The American dream is usually seen as achievements in prosperity in a country that embraces consumerism. One of the fields that supports that dream is the path of a traveling salesman. Seeing the world and meeting new people while making a few dollars off the sold items sounds as adventurous and prosperous as the pilgrims' discovering "new worlds" searching for gold and glory. The 1969 documentary film Salesman (1969) by the Maysles brothers captures this perception of the American dream yet doesn't appear as glamorous as one would believe. To persuade people through their argument is achieved through the use of Aristotle's three principles of persuasion ethos, logos, and pathos, from both the makers and the film's subjects.
Before making the film, the Maysles' were originally salesmen themselves, naturally qualifying as the appropriate use of ethos to conduct its outlook on the supposed American dream in consumerism. In the context of the film, however, ethos takes the center of the salesmen featured on-screen. Observing them trying to sell the bible to customers who usually have conflicted reactions paying little to no attention to the camera gives a raw sense that this typically happens in the life of a traveling salesman. Despite the moral debate of selling bibles for profit instead of donating the money for charity or simply giving them away, the salesmen are shown in a few scenes taught by their superiors to not to be ashamed of what they're doing. They are told to consider the job of bible selling as a noble cause since it still inspires Christianity in the lord's name. While under the impression that what they are doing is beneficial to both god and business, none of them appear religious. Barely any of them, when attempting to sell the bible, don't go into too much detail about God. They are seen either guilting people to buying it or playing on their emotions from their friendly attitudes. Sometimes they'll bring up the religious aspect of it in their sales, but they see the bible as nothing more as an object that could make a good present than something holy and sacred. One of the salesmen can be seen coldly turning off a TV set playing the song "Silent Night," expressing how religion means nothing to any of them. For the picture to provide the salesmen with relatability instead of just showing them going to meetings and trying to sell their product, the film has moments of them behaving like the average American citizen when off-duty. Scenes depicting them sitting around casually talking to each other as they partake in typical activities such as swimming, playing poker, or watching TV make them seem like down-to-earth human beings.
By successfully using ethos to establish that these are typical Americans taught to take pride in their job to give audiences a source of credibility that what is happening is (supposedly) authentic; the Maysles' proceed to play on the emotion of the audience through pathos. Out of the four salesmen, most of the attention is given to Paul Brennan. Unlike the other salesmen who are confident in their job and usually shown succeeding when making their sales, Paul though having some successes mostly fails at his attempts to sell the bible, making him appear as a victim. As the other salesmen joke around, smoke, and talk about the business, Paul is isolated from their world, sitting at the other end of the table quietly or standing far away from them with a gloomy look on his face. At one point, as he sits alone on a dimly lit train gazing out the window looking miserable, one of the speeches heard at one of their meetings is heard stating, "If a guy's not a success, he's got no one to blame but himself." This image and use of sound suggest Paul is not successful. He knows it and doesn't keep that negative feeling to himself either. Half of the things Paul talks about when around other people when not trying to sell are his failures. As the others are watching a boxing match on television at the motel, Paul tells them he "hit them with everything he could" yet couldn't make the sale. It's almost as if he's comparing himself to a boxer in the ring, who keeps falling after punching his opponent with everything he has, as he's used by the person who sponsors the athlete.
Providing a valid reason for Paul's struggles is the film's use of logos to support the faulty American dream's argument. There's never a scene where Paul and the others enter an environment that seems luxurious nor exciting. They spend most of their time staying at sleazy motels and eating at smokey diners. The suburban American homes they visit aren't all that riveting either; they appear as shabby as the places they stay. Most of the houses seem to look the same, causing Paul to find himself lost as if he is trapped in a maze. The people the salesmen talk to aren't too different either, as many of them appear to be skeptical housewives who don't have a lot of money. The settings, along with the black-and-white cinematography, paints America as a dreary place. A country where one can succeed, except the grass, will never be greener. And the steps that we see the men take to achieve the American dream are not too satisfying. Just as they manipulate customers to make money, the sellers are portrayed as brainwashed puppets for their bosses to profit off religion. In every meeting the characters go to, they're constantly reminded that their failures to sell are all their fault. Therefore, they must push harder. That's not to say encouragement is not present, but much like how a salesman can make manipulative claims to tempt the customer, their bosses do the same to their employees. In the first of the few scenes of them attending a meeting, the person hosting it tells them that they had to let people go. Not for necessarily failing their job but based on the uncertainty if they are still qualified for their career after occasionally "going off base." He expects his employees to make the sales without fail and focus more on their work than their downtime. Paul later states in the film that a person who loses their push in the business is finished. Paul's statement implicates that he will eventually be terminated due to his constant failures as a salesman now that he is slipping at his job, realizing the industry uses people until they have lost their touch.
By incorporating ethos through the salesmen, pathos from Paul's perspective, and logos in its gritty depiction of life in America as a traveling salesman, the Maysles make it clear that the road to the American Dream is not as promising as it may seem. Getting the opportunity to explore America may sound adventurous, except that many parts look the same as others for how run-down they appear. A job may offer benefits and opportunities compared to others, but at the end of the day, the person working is exploited for their gifts from the higher ups until they have nothing left to offer. And what's worse is in a country that embraces religion, a religious symbol is used as a marketing tool for corrupt greed. Whether the person is the salesman or a customer, if there's one thing they share, they are always manipulated by other people.
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