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The character known as “The Woman” is the secretary with whom Willy has an affair during his travels to Boston. Never given a proper name, the Woman functions as a symbol of Willy’s moral shortcomings and emphasizes the emptiness that characterizes his life. She appears twice in the play, once in each act, as a part of Willy’s flashbacks, and these moments suggest that he still feels incredibly guilty about his actions many years later. In each appearance, the Woman comes across as flirtatious and notably put together. Her laughter is often the first sign of her arrival on stage, and the lightness of her personality aims to disguise the otherwise bleak circumstances of her relationship with Willy. Given that his job requires him to be away from his family for extended periods of time, he feels incredibly lonely and admits as much to Biff when he learns about the affair. The fact that the Woman, who lacks depth as a character, is Willy’s solution to his emotional isolation suggests that he is too afraid to confront the realities of his failed American Dream. The Woman tempts him to make the easy yet ultimately unfulfilling choice when it comes to alleviating his depression.
In addition to highlighting Willy’s weaknesses, the Woman’s presence instigates the years-long rift between Biff and his father and continues to haunt them in the present day. Her second appearance occurs during the flashback scene in which young Biff, who just failed out of math, arrives in Boston and discovers her in his father’s hotel room. Learning of the affair causes Biff to view Willy as corrupt, disloyal, and a liar, and he vows to never follow in his father’s footsteps. He delivers on this promise by losing all interest and motivation, a change which shocks his family and particularly frustrates Willy. Given that this dynamic serves as one of the primary conflicts during the play’s present day, the influence that the Woman has on the Loman family is undeniable. Memories of her also continue to plague Willy, especially whenever he sees Linda mending stockings. Willy once promised stockings to the Woman, so the sight of them serves as a painful reminder of his infidelity and the sorrow he brought upon his family.
