Willy Believes in the American Dream But He Fails in Achieving it. Describe and Analyse His Dreams and Their Importance in His Familys Life
Tilly Riches Death of A Salesman
Willy Believes in the American Dream But He Fails in Achieving it. Describe and Analyse His Dreams and Their Importance in His Familys Life
America is a rich successful, prosperous country. And has many wealthy and powerful international role models. American people, much like people in any other country, strive to achieve their dreams. Many base their key dreams around the 'The American Dream'. The American Dream is the belief that if you work hard and believe in yourself the result will be wealth, power and happiness. The 'dreamers' want to be independent and work for themselves. "Death of A Salesman", is about the American Dream and one middle-aged man's failure of it. He is a salesman, who wants to live the dream.
Willy Loman has worked for Howard Wagner and his father's firm for thirty-four years. Willy travels regularly to Boston to sell to the customers. All of his life he has dreamt about becoming successful and respected by his family and friends, he wants to be admired. Willy is, shall we say, somewhat deluded. He seems to have caught up in the rush of modern society. Howard, Willy's boss, has just bought a new recording machine. When Willy hears the machine play, it scares him, he says, "Shut it off! Shut it off!" Willy's most prominent delusion is that success comes if you have good looks and are well liked. Willy has neither of these qualities despite instilling this belief into his two sons Biff and Happy. Willy seems to use his job as an excuse for why he is such a dreamer; he says to Charley, "A Salesman's got to live the dream. It comes with the territory."
Charley sums up Willy's life by saying "When the hell are you going to grow up?" Willy spends his life in an illusion, constantly believing that he is a great man who is popular and successful. "I'm the New England man. I'm vital in New England." Willy is an all- American dreamer who is too full of pride to accept the fact that his dream of being a successful salesman will never come true. He never realizes what a failure he is and where he fits in society. The old saying "Pride comes before a fall" is a sharp realization of Willy's Life.
Willy's dreams are that his boys will become successful in the world of business, the name of Loman will be respected and "well liked by many people", and he or his sons will become wealthy and that he will be a successful salesman. Willy in his dreams of his father and his brother Ben, admires the way people become pioneers. We have to remember that Ben is only seen in Willy's mind, everything that Ben does or says is seen through the eyes of Willy. Willy wants to become successful easily like his brother Ben did. Willy dreams ...
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Willy's dreams are that his boys will become successful in the world of business, the name of Loman will be respected and "well liked by many people", and he or his sons will become wealthy and that he will be a successful salesman. Willy in his dreams of his father and his brother Ben, admires the way people become pioneers. We have to remember that Ben is only seen in Willy's mind, everything that Ben does or says is seen through the eyes of Willy. Willy wants to become successful easily like his brother Ben did. Willy dreams of owning his own business, "Someday I'll have my own business, and I'll never have to leave home anymore." Ben strayed into Africa on his way to Alaska, "I walked into the jungle when I was seventeen- I walked out when I was twenty one and by god I was rich!" Ben is Willy's idea of success. He and Willy agree on the American-boy ideal "keen on games, rugged, well liked, all around."
Biff Loman, in many ways is similar to his father; he is the product of his fathers' dreams and admiration. Willy's dreams have a negative impact on Biff and Happy throughout their lives. At the beginning of the play, Biff shares many of the same ideas as Willy. He values being well liked and sees little point in being honest. In fact, he is another failure of the American dream; he thinks he is well liked when in reality he is not, the watchman on the building site, Bill Oliver and the parents of the neighborhood girls. Biff steals many things throughout his life. When Biff was young, his father wanted, more then anything for him to be a big football star, but because of Willy's actions, he failed to realize the dream. Biff never studied at school and failed to achieve the required grade for entrance to university. Bernard told Biff that he had to study if he wanted to get into university but Willy said that being "well liked" would get him in and " With scholarships to three universities they're gonna flunk him?" When Biff and Happy were at high school Willy frequently traveled to Boston, Willy was unfaithful to Linda with another woman at this time. Her attention and admiration boost Willy's fragile ego. When Biff fails maths at school, he travels to see Willy is Boston to ask him to persuade his teacher to pass him. He catches Willy in his hotel room with the woman. Biff loses faith in his father, and his dreams of passing math and going to college die after that day. Biff realizes that Willy is a dreamer he shouts, "You fake! You phoney little fake! You fake!" Biff has followed his father's values all his life and now he finds them fake, he learns he has none of his own. Biff now sets out to find his own values. At the end of the play, Biff tells Willy what he really thinks of him. Biff admires his father, but, he does not like the way he dreams too much, " I realized what a ridiculous lie my whole life has been. We've been talking in a dream for fifteen years."
Happy's life has been greatly influenced by Willy's dreams even more so than Biffs. Happy fails to realize like Biff that they have all been living in a dream world. As Biff grew older, he created his own set of values but Happy remained stuck in the ideology of the American Dream. He works as an assistant to an assistant, but he represents himself as someone who is much more important than what he is, Biff challenges him at this and Happy says, "Well, I'm practically-." Happy has bad business values and sleeps with the girlfriends of his employers. Happy has always been rejected by Willy, in one of the flashbacks Willy has, Happy says, "I'm losing weight, you notice, Pop?" He desperately craves some attention from Willy; he leaves Willy alone in the restaurant at the end as some sort of retaliation for being ignored most of his life. Happy cannot accept reality, much like his father. When Biff, Happy, and Willy are in the restaurant, Happy tries to prevent Willy from learning that Biff did not get the loan. Happy constantly reassures Willy that Biffs interview with Bill Oliver went brilliantly. At the end of the play, Happy insists that Willy "did not die in vain. He had a good dream."
Linda Loman, Willy's wife seems to have been caught up in the ideas of Willy and drifted along in the process. She realizes that if Willy does not stop dreaming then he will most definitely kill himself, which does happen since Willy never realizes that he can escape from his self-expectant high values. Linda says, "Attention must be paid," to Willy's condition. Linda is more of a survivor than Biff and Happy, she does not really realize what a failure Willy is. She never finds out that Willy has betrayed their marriage vows by having a mistress. If Linda had found out about her and Willy she would have been distraught and may even have contemplated suicide herself. Even though Willy somewhat mistreats Linda, she still very much loves him.
Willy loses sight of achieving the true goal of the American Dream, happiness and freedom and the dream took control of him, which ultimately causes him to commit suicide. Willy did not have the talent to be a successful salesman; he struggled to be something that he was not. He became unable to see how his family had become disillusioned because he became so obsessed with living the dream. Willy still tried to pursue the dream though. He did not understand that being a salesman is based on lies and deceit you are selling the ultimate dream. He could not achieve an honest dream by selling lies. He never understood this he was living in pursuit of the dream and not the dream. His family becomes dysfunctional. Biff begins to hate his father because of the constant pressure to achieve and succeed, he hates his fathers' adultery and the way he treats his mother. Linda is annoyed with Happy and Biff because they do not respect Willy and his dreams. Willy seems to love his wife apart from the problem he has of cutting her off in mid sentence and is a typical male chauvinist. Biff deep down really still does care for Willy, however Biff is also a failure in Willys eyes because he has not lived the dream. Happy is much more like his father, he evades reality by living in a fantasy world. The play has a tragic ending of Willy still wanting his family to live his dream. Willy kills himself, hoping that the insurance money will help his family on their way to success; but the insurance money from his death will help no one, his family still has to deal with the grief that Willy could not accept who he was and who they are.
