The Salesman (2017) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Rana was attacked because the previous tenant of the apartment was a prostitute who had conflicts with her clients. The attacker was Majid's father-in-law, who had been a client of the prostitute and may have come to the apartment looking for her, mistaking Rana for the former tenant when she opened the door.

Foreshadowing: The neighbours mention that the former tenant had 'conflicts with her clients' before the attack occurs.

• rana attack
• prostitute tenant
• intruder
• majid father-in-law

The intruder was let in through the intercom. When Emad returned home, someone buzzed the intruder in, who then waited for an opportunity to enter the apartment while Rana was bathing, believing the person entering was her husband.

• intercom
• break-in
• apartment entry
• intruder

The attacker was Majid's prospective father-in-law, an older man who had been a client of the former prostitute tenant. While he denies actually attacking Rana, he admits to being at the apartment, suggesting he may have only startled her rather than physically assaulting her.

• majid
• attacker
• father-in-law
• old man

Emad suspects Babak because he helped secure the apartment for them but kept secrets about the previous tenant's identity as a prostitute and her dangerous clients. Emad resents that Babak's secrecy put them in harm's way by not warning them about the risks associated with the previous tenant.

• babak
• suspicion
• blame
• former tenant

Rana refuses to involve the police because she is deeply traumatized by the assault. She cannot recall the attacker's face, feels violated and ashamed, and refuses to bathe or even enter the bathroom. Her trauma manifests during a performance when she breaks down in tears and leaves the stage.

• rana trauma
• police
• refusal
• bathroom
• assault

The play serves as a thematic parallel to Emad's life, he plays Willy Loman, a failing salesman struggling with identity and emasculation. The title 'The Salesman' mirrors how students tease Emad as a 'salesman,' and his journey of seeking vengeance after his wife is violated echoes Willy's own struggles with honor, failure, and retaliation.

• death of a salesm Willy loman
• arthur miller
• parallel
• thematic

Emad lures the old man to their old apartment by pretending to need a mover. He locks the old man in a small room and calls his family, intending to expose his character. When the family arrives thinking it's a medical emergency, Emad privately returns the money the old man left after the assault, then slaps him. The old man collapses and an ambulance is called.

Foreshadowing: Emad's earlier line calling Charley a 'degenerate' hints at his growing desire for violent retribution.

• confrontation
• revenge
• slap
• old man
• ambulance

Rana warns Emad that pursuing revenge could destroy their marriage because she fears his quest for vengeance will consume him and change who he is. She wants to move forward and heal, not be defined by the attack. Her warning reflects the story's theme that vengeance corrupts rather than resolves.

• rana warning
• marriage
• revenge
• relationship
• betrayal

The apartment collapse forces Emad and Rana to move into the new apartment where the attack occurs. This relocation is crucial because it places them in a space connected to the former prostitute tenant, directly leading to the assault. The collapse sets the entire tragedy in motion.

Foreshadowing: The couple 'places the former owner's belongings outside, trying to make the space usable', this act of clearing the space connects them to the previous tenant's life.

• apartment collapse
• relocation
• moving
• new apartment

Emad turns to a student whose father once worked for the police. Using this connection, he traces the truck found at the scene to a man named Majid. He then lures Majid to their old apartment by pretending to need a mover, though Majid's prospective father-in-law arrives instead.

• student
• police
• truck
• majid
• tracing

Emad returns the money the old man left behind after Rana's assault as part of his 'settlement', he wants to take something from the old man before exacting his revenge. The money represents the old man's attempted compensation, which Emad uses as a symbolic gesture before delivering his act of vengeance.

• money
• return
• compensation
• settling score

After Emad slaps the old man and he collapses, an ambulance is summoned. The family leaves believing there was a medical emergency. Emad and Rana then return to the theatre together, continuing to perform Death of a Salesman. The ending is bittersweet, the immediate conflict is resolved, but their relationship remains strained and uncertain.

• ending
• theatre
• performance
• bittersweet
• resume