When Willy comes home after work, he speaks to his sons as if he is a Dave Singleman; "I see great things for you kids, I think your troubles are over. But remember start big and you'll end big." By doing this, he taught his sons, "be liked and you will never want." Willy believes this is the "secret" to becoming successful just like Dave Singleman, and Willy's brother Ben. To Willy, Ben has achieved the American Dream. Willy uses Ben's success as a symbol of hope, "When I was seventeen I walked into the jungle and when I was twenty-one I walked out. And by God I was rich." What Willy doesn't understand is that Dave was well-liked by his clients, and this is reflected by the "hundreds of salesmen and buyers" who came to his funeral.
Biff identifies his father's failure in the family environment being "a phony little fake" and he ultimately starts to assess his own degrading life in reality. It is Willy's fault the way Biff feels, 'And I never got anywhere because you blew me so full of hot air I could never stand taking orders from anybody! That's whose fault it is!' From this you can deduce the extent of Willy's influence on his son's. Not only is Willy a failure to himself, he has also ultimately forced his son's into living the same tragic life, forcing them to live in a prosperous and rapidly growing part of society. Willy constantly makes reference to the environment around him, describing; "competition is maddening.. there's more people now...they massacred the neighbourhood." This shows that the purchasing of the house in the first place was an optimistic gesture with the hope of becoming a successor to the American Dream. However, the reality is the total opposite to his dreams.
Willy never realizes that he is better with his hands than he is with the sales business: "We should be mixing cement on some open plain, or carpenters." It is obvious that he chose the wrong dreams from the beginning. The notion of the American Dream clouded his judgment and the thoughts of gaining material wealth consumed him. However, it can be concluded that he has greater interests and skills as a carpenter; "I could build two guest houses...All the cement, the lumber, the reconstruction I put into this house!" Miller has created the character of Willy to portray his visions about the corruptive power of the American Dream, being instilled in peoples' minds. Miller is saying that Willy chose a career against his interests and skills, in a plea to gain material wealth in society.
The character of Charley and his son Bernard, contrast directly to the failure of Willy. They are the typical model of a hard working family who become successful, with realistic dreams. When Charley becomes fired after thirty years of work, he tries to assist Willy in good faith, but Willy declines the offer; "I got a job, I told you that. What the hell are you offering me a job for?" .This shines light on the set of morals that he has. Willy has ultimately bottled up all his feelings inside, and doesn't allow himself to face the reality of his own life. Charley has realized that Willy's view of success is seriously flawed. Charley said, 'The only thing you got in this world is what you can sell.' And as Willy can't sell anything, he has got nothing.
In the Requiem there is a strong sense of sympathy towards the tragedy of Willy. Linda comments "He was so wonderful with his hands". Again, this reinforces this notion of him following the wrong dreams. Biff reiterates this same subtle idea "You know something Charley, there's more of him in that front stoop than in all the sales he ever made." It is made clear that Willy had a strong passion to follow his dreams "to the end", even though his true interests were in becoming a carpenter.
The last stage directions embellish an important correlation between the tragedy of Willy, and the environment he is entrapped in. "Only the music of the flute is left on the darkening stage as over the house the hard towers of the apartment buildings rise into sharp focus." This shows that Willy never came any closer to fulfilling his dreams, from the moment he bought the house which is now dominated by towering apartment buildings. He wanted to become well respected and liked, but it is clear that his character is an accurate portrayal of the corruptive capabilities of the American Dream.
Willy's inability to adapt to the pressures of society and the changing environment made him take his own life to save his family by letting them become "free and clear". Willy is finally let free from the overpowering society which he tried to escape and by his own words "...you end up worth more dead than alive."