Examine the relationship between Willy and his sons in "Death of a Salesman"
Examine the relationship between Willy and his sons in "Death of a Salesman"
At the beginning of the play, both Biff and Happy regard their father as a great man, a man to look up to, and a man to respect. To the boys he was seen as an ideal father, as he was never present to discipline the two and he was eager for them both, Biff in particular, to fulfil their potential and become great men However, as the play progresses, the idealistic image of Willy Loman seems to evaporate through the test of time, and at the end of the play a sad image of Willy Loman is painted with Biff claiming that his father is no more "than a dime a dozen", just like himself.
As a teenager, Biff worshipped his father, but by the end of the play he sees him as nothing more than a pretender and a compulsive liar, whose deceit and inflated expectations of his elder son has hampered any opportunity Biff had of being himself and ever telling the truth. Biff is left angered and confused when he discovers that his father has been cheating on his faithful mother and in a poignant confrontation with his father he shatters Willy's dreams and insists that they:
"...never told the truth in (this) house for ten minutes". Unlike his father and his younger brother Happy, Biff acknowledges his failure and realises that Willy "had the wrong dreams", he even realises what a "ridiculous lie" is own life had been.
The strain of having to live up to his father's inconceivably high standards appear to have been too much for Biff and before Willy dies, we see how he has lost respect for his disturbed father. In his final conversation with his father, he refers to him as 'Willy', it seems that no longer does Biff regard Willy as his father, but just a "fake" whose "phoney dreams" and constant exaggerations are the cause of Biff's fruitless life.
Happy lived in the shadow of Biff throughout his father's life. Whilst his brother was a champion athlete, Happy was no more than a nuisance whose constant attempts at gaining attention went unnoticed. Starved of attention, Happy appeared to crave love and affection and often made attention-seeking statements to get the approval of his parents.
In Act II, when the neglected son tells his father: "I'm getting married, Pop, don't forget it", Willy just ignores him and turns his back; this is just one example of many where Willy dismisses Happy's hopes and dreams. We find ...
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Happy lived in the shadow of Biff throughout his father's life. Whilst his brother was a champion athlete, Happy was no more than a nuisance whose constant attempts at gaining attention went unnoticed. Starved of attention, Happy appeared to crave love and affection and often made attention-seeking statements to get the approval of his parents.
In Act II, when the neglected son tells his father: "I'm getting married, Pop, don't forget it", Willy just ignores him and turns his back; this is just one example of many where Willy dismisses Happy's hopes and dreams. We find another example of this in Act I, where Happy joins in the excitement in a conversation by claiming: "I'm losin' weight, you notice, pop?", Willy ignores this and continues talking again. This must be difficult for Happy to swallow, as he is only in search for praise, but instead, his father's attention is drawn once more to Biff and his new ball.
Happy is similar to his father in some respects and completely different in others. Like Willy, Happy deludes himself and his family by claiming that he is the assistant buyer at his store, when in reality he is only the assistant to the assistant buyer. However, it appears that Happy lies in order to impress his father and receive the praise that he has longed for since he was young, when he used to say:
"I'm losin' weight pop, you notice?" On one hand, Happy is also similar to his father because he feels isolated, however, on the other hand, Happy is nowhere near as manic as his father, who is constantly changing moods, from optimistic one day, to suicidal the next.
Willy Loman was a salesman first and a father second. Often absent from his home, he neglected his parental duties and lacked discipline. He allowed his sons to do as they wished, this it seems, contributed to the boys' failure in life. As Biff himself said:
"I never got anywhere because you blew me so full of hot air, I could never stand taking orders from anybody!" Willy neglected to instil any sense of integrity or morality in the boys, he even encouraged them to steal, and simply laughs when he discovers that Biff has stolen a football, and claims that the coach will probably "congratulate you [Biff] on your initiative." With Willy as a role model, how could the boys ever expect to make something of their lives?
Willy believed that success came from being well liked and preached this to his sons; he insisted that because their neighbour Bernard, was not well liked, he would not succeed in life. However, when Willy runs into Bernard as an adult, Bernard is a successful lawyer who is arguing a case before the Supreme Court, whilst Biff, who was well liked, is nothing more than a "lazy bum", in Willy's eyes.
Throughout the play, Willy is in confrontation with one thing: failure. At first he is a failure because his business is slowing down and he is losing popularity. Willy seems to be able to accept this, but once Biff realises that he is a failure, life becomes unbearable for Willy. In his opinion, he himself is a failure because he is no longer well liked, and his favourite son regards him as a "fake." Willy believes that the only way he can regain the respect of his son is to safeguard his future, by committing suicide and giving Biff the chance to become successful with the insurance money. He is sadly mistaken though, as Biff only wanted his father to tell the truth and realise that he was just an "ordinary man"
It is with great irony that in the play the word 'fail' or 'failure' is never used. This may reflect the fact that only a third person looking into the world of the Lomans could accept that they were failures. Being Lomans, it would be difficult for either Biff or Happy to use the word 'fail', even when Biff acknowledges that he is a 'failure', in the eyes of his late father.
To conclude, it is important to realise that Biff and Happy differ in their views on their late father. Biff realises that Willy's life was a waste and one great lie, and is determined not to go down the same path. Where as Happy on the other hand, feels it is his duty to honour is father's dreams and claimed:
"Willy Loman did not die in vain...... He had a good dream, the only dream a man can have - to come out number one man. He fought it out here, and this is where I'm gonna win it for him." As long as Happy believes this, he is sadly destined to live the same life as his father, and die the same 'Death of a Salesman' as his deluded father.
One thing to remember is that both Biff and Happy loved their father dearly. This is evident throughout, as they repeatedly show concern for Willy's well being. Biff may have lost respect for his broken father, but he certainly cared for him. This is confirmed when he cries during the final confrontation with his father.
All things considered, it is fair to say that the relationship between Willy Loman and his sons is a complex one. Biff was the favoured son of Willy, whilst Happy was more similar to his father than Biff. Happy could see no wrong in Willy throughout, and vowed to fight his father's dream, where as the elder son, Biff could see his father's shortcomings. Their relationship with their mother was something very different to the one with their father, who they wanted to continually impress The deterioration of Willy's state of mind and mental health plays a key role in the deterioration of the relationship between Willy and Biff, on which the play's internal conflict is based. As the play progresses, Happy's faith in his father strengthens, and he is inspired by his father's "fight". Whereas Biff's feelings towards his father are mixed. He loves his father, but no longer respects him; Biff believes that it is his father's fault that Biff is in a dead end job with no prospects for a better future and finds it almost impossible to forgive him for having an affair.
Willy Loman wanted his children to be "great", this was his last hope in life, but it is fair to say that he wasn't a good father. Although his heart was in the right place, his method of upbringing the boys can only be seen as a sign of a confused and deluded man, who commited the ultimate sacrifice to be well liked: suicide.
Thomas Morris
Words: 1460
