“Attention must be paid.”
Linda Loman, wife of Willy Loman, delivers that well-known line in Arthur Miller’s play “Death of a Salesman.” Willy is crash-diving into catastrophe, suffering from exhaustion, failure and delusions, and Linda wants her sons to step up and pity and support their father: “He put his whole life into you and you’ve turned your back on him.” she tells them, “So attention must be paid. He’s not to be allowed to fall in his grave like an old dog. Attention, attention must finally be paid to such a person.”