The American dream offers chances of riches even to those who start with nothing; it works back to the early history of America when the pioneers conquered the wilderness of the future. The image that was created was that becoming rich was a simple matter of asserting your personal qualities as an individual. Willy believes that to be well liked is the means to be successful, so if you fail to achieve the American Dream must indicate a failure of personality, Arthur Miller notes in his autobiography ‘ there are dear echoes of his attitude in Willy and Biff who both blame themselves for lack of economic success and its repercussions for his family.’ Willy very often Lapses into a flashback and appears to be reliving conversations and situations that occurred years ago.
Willy has a lot of pride, pride in being or pretending to be a successful salesman, pride in his sons especially Biff and pride of being independent {prove of this is when he refuses Charley’s offer of a Job and lies to Linda about borrowing money saying it is his pay instead}.
Willy Loman spent thirty-four years being a salesman and at sixty he has exhausted himself and the community has cast him aside.
Willy’s illusions soon bring him into a downfall, in the end Willy believes that a man can be, worth more dead then alive and so Willy even contemplates suicide, because he feels that the money his family will claim because of his death will help them in the way he could never mange to achieve.
‘ After all the highways, and trains, and the years,
You end up worth more dead then alive’
Charlie, Willy’s friend and neighbour, always tries to bring him back to reality by telling him things like,
‘ A man isn’t worth anything dead’
Willy is also unable to accept change. He says,
‘ How can they whip cheese’ and ‘ in a race
With the junkyard’
The American dream offers the chance of riches even to those who starts with nothing, Ben, Willy deceased brother, represent this to Willy,
‘ There was a man who started with the clothes on his back and ended up with diamond mines’ Willy
‘Why boys, when I was seventeen, I walked into the jungle and when I was twenty-one I walked out, and by god I was rich’ Ben said to Willy’s sons Biff and Happy.
The diamonds symbolise success and the forest or the woods are symbolic for life. When Willy’s life is cashing down around him he says
‘The woods are burning…’
Willy feels that his life is burning down around him and he can’t do anything to stop it, at this time Willy is realising, what the world is really like and what he really is in reality, his dreams have conquered him, and I believe Willy’s life has always been based around his dreams, and to finally realise that he can not achieve them, he falls in to a mental breakdown.
During Willy’s Breakdown, he goes into the garden to try plant so seeds, at night, I believe this is his last attempt, to leave his family with something, even as small as that, it would be something he would had achieved, I believe he feels that maybe he can make a success of at least something before it to late, Willy wanted to leave something of value behind which will outlive him.
Willy had failed at what he set out to do, he lived in a dream world were he thought he had his American dream but in reality he wasn’t as well liked as he told not only the people around him but his self. His wife, who believed her husband, was shocked at his funeral, when nobody but his family {plus Charley and his son Bernard} came to his funeral.
‘ But where are all the people he knew…’ Linda asked at the funeral.
Willy never succeeded, but I believe due to his death he allowed his sons especially Biff to achieve their dreams. Willy thought that the answer to Biff and Happy’s dreams was money, he heard them talk about setting up a business for themselves, but they hadn’t enough money to start it off, during the story, Biff even try’s to get loan from someone he once worked for, everyone in the family thought that he would get it, as he was well liked but the man didn’t even remember him and gave him no chance to even ask. Willy thought that this death might help them on their way to be well liked and successful.
In my opinion the story, is a complex one and deals with different emotions, Arthur Miller shown the point of view of each member of the family through different scenes of the story. Arthur Miller also shows how dreams can damage a person’s life and hope. Willy is a very determined man who is bewildered at his lack of success; he hides behind lies and pretence to disguise the fact to, himself and others that he has failed.
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