The driving force behind Willy Loman throughout the Death of a Salesman, is the idea that he can achieve the "American Dream". He wants to have the material things in life and to have the best of everything; he wants lots of money, a big house, and a loving family and, "To come out the number-one man". He sees Ben as the epitome of success, he longs to be as successful as Ben or even as successful as Bernard, always asking "What's the secret?" Instead of being discouraged from this by Linda she is tolerant of him, constantly backing down, right to the end. Even in his plans of suicide, she is scared to "contradict" him, instead replacing the rubber hose every evening when he comes home.
Happy idolises his father and buys into the "American Dream". Right until the end, he believes he actually is somebody. When Biff points out, "You're one of the two assistants to the assistant" he still tries to convince himself of his importance. He is very like his father in his need for success, when he looks where there is no success he has to make it up. Both of them believe they have to lie to people to make themselves likeable. When Willy dies, instead of understanding how futile his dream is, Happy vows to fight on for Willy continuing his battle. Biff, however is less stubborn and prefers simple pleasures. He doesn't want to be told how to live his life and doesn't want to follow certain rules. He wants to be able to "whistle in the elevator". He loves "The work and the food and the time to sit and smoke". He doesn't want to beg and crawl and make money he would only spend to beg and crawl less. However Willy doesn't understand this and believes that Biff is simply, "A lazy bum". He is sure that Biff could succeed in the city if he only tried. Both Willy and Happy feel they have to cover up Biff's lack of success; Willy boasts to Bernard that Biff has being doing, "very big things in the West" and Happy in much the same way tells Stanley how Biff is a "big cattle man". They wholly subscribe to the American Dream
A major part of the play is the time that Willy spends living in the past - daydreaming and reminiscing. He is constantly revisiting the parts of his life that have shaped him to the person that he is. In this way the audience unravels the story of Biff's childhood, Ben's success and Willy's affair with 'The Woman'. This seems to be the part of his life he most regrets, as it is the time he revisits the most. At several moments throughout the play, 'The Woman's laughter is heard from offstage, usually at times that Willy sees what has become of his life, for example when he sees Linda mending her stockings. These flashbacks are played out to the audience like scenes in real life and often simultaneously - they are only indicated by the actions of the actors. During dream sequences, the actors pass through the boundaries of the walls as though acting on a completely different stage, but during sequences in the present the actors obey the imaginary lines of the walls, entering and leaving through the doors. This helps the audience to distinguish between times. Often during flashbacks a certain melody is heard on the flute - this is his father's flute. Ben tells Willy about their father and how they used to sit around a fire and listen to their father play.
Ben is idolised by Willy for his success and wealth but at the same time distrusted by Linda. She seems to be reserved in her affection for him as opposed to Willy who treats him as a hero the moment he walks through the door and she is disinterested when Willy reminisces about Ben years later. We don't meet Ben in person at any time throughout the play, only through Willy's dreams, so we are only aware of him through Willy's estimation of him. Willy remembers him as a go-getter and a leader of men. He is shown to be motivated only by money as seen in his final conversation with Willy. He is not concerned with Willy's wellbeing, only by the large sum of money he would gain from the insurance payoff, "twenty thousand - that is something one can feel with the hand"
Linda is the only member of the Loman family that has no dreams, all she wants is for Willy to be safe and well and the boys to respect him. Happy's farfetched idea of setting up business on their own carries even Biff away. Linda merely encourages. She is contented to live with Willy even if they have no garden or the car breaks down or the fridge fails. Arthur Miller seems to see her, not Ben, as the real hero of the play. This is reflected in the gentle respect he gives to her in his writing.
This play is a strong message against the principle of the "American Dream". Willy Loman is constantly striving to achieve the dream, but drives himself crazy. Biff seems to be the only character in the Loman family that is able to set himself aside from this dream, wanting only to be happy - his own man. Although I believe dreams to be an important, if not essential part of life, I also believe that contentment is far more important. If you cannot be happy with what you have, you cannot possibly hope to be happy with what you wish for. Willy Loman dreams of becoming a great man, dreams of the great man he was and dreams of the great man Biff can be, he just fails to realise that they are great men.
