"All literature shows us the power of emotion. It is emotion, not reason, that motivates characters in literature." This is a true statement. In all literature, it is a character's feelings which lead to their actions and not any logic or reasoning. This idea can be found in both the plays Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller and Ma Rainey's Black Bottom by August Wilson. In Death of a Salesman, Willy feels like he is a failure as a father and as a salesman. This sense of failure leads to Willy's decision to commit suicide. Miller uses symbolism, such as seeds and diamonds, to represent Willy's failure to attain the American Dream for himself and for his family. In Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Levee's insecurity about who he is in society and as an individual causes there to be problems between him and the other characters. Levee's...