Examples Of Willy's Exaggeration In Death Of A Salesman

To begin, the first theme that comes up is pride. Willy is constantly lets pride get in his way. So much so that when Willy desperately needed something, his pride would not allow him to accept it. This becomes clear when Linda asked Willy to get a New York job, and Willy replied, “ They don’t need me in New York, I’m a New England man. They need me in New England”(Act I). Willy is falsely insisting that he still an important member even though his sales have not been very good for a long time. Another instance in which his pride gets in the way is when Charley offered him a job and willy replied, “ I’ve got a job”(Act II). Willy refused a job even though he had just gotten fired from his other job. All in all this goes to show that having too much pride is not necessarily a good thing.

To begin, Willy could be described as having a case of misguided life goals paired with self-deception. Willy was unable to admit to his faults. His pride was so boisterous that he would lie to his own family, borrowing money every week from his neighbor, Charley, and claiming that it was his salary. Due to extreme insecurities, Willy compulsively lied to himself and his family in effort of making himself feel better about who he really is, disguising his self doubt and inner anxiety with profound arrogance. Willy raised his sons to believe that in order to be successful, one must be well liked. “Be liked and you will never want.” (1.3) He often lied to them and exaggerated his success, which led them to believe that everything was as good as he claimed them to be. Willy even encouraged deceit in his oldest son by urging him to steal things and cheat on tests. In Willy’s own delusional world, he is a largely successful and well liked salesman with sons destined for greatness, taking every opportunity to brag about these false perceptions. He lied about almost everything, even the quality of

      Arthur Miller succeeds in demonstrating incredibly well in Death of a Salesman that not only is tragic heroism still possible in the modern world, but that it is also an affliction to which both king and commoner are equally susceptible.  However, Wily Loman is not a tragic hero because he is pathetic, not heroic, in his personal "tragedy" that comes from his inability to admit his mistakes and learn from them.  Instead, he fits Miller's description of pathos and the pathetic character, one who "by virtue of his witlessness, his insensitivity, or the very air he gives off, [is] incapable of grappling with a much superior force," (Miller  1728).

Willy Loman not only recognizes his shortcomings, he agonizingly recognizes his incompetence. Willy feels like the low man on the totem pole, never receiving credit or rewards for his years of dedicated service (Koprince, 2012). This matters immensely, because without the success Willy feels he should have accomplished, means that he has failed not only in his occupation, but also his family. Willy is now in his sixty’s and that adds to his pressure of not attaining the success he believes he deserves. He is tired (Koprince, 2012).

Willy was overcome by the desire to prove to his family that he actually was an important person and that his family can depend on him for anything in the hope that he is the “man of the house”. He was so overcome with this desire that he lost sight of everything else, which in the end led to his epic downfall. This fatal flaw is what made Willy a tragic hero. Willy not only lies to the people he talks to but he also lies to himself. In Act 1 Willy Loman says “I'm the New England man. I'm vital in New England.” Willy reveals this to Linda due to the fact that he undoubtedly believes it, he believes he is vital to the company even though the company could care less about him. Willy was so intent on having everyone like him that he did not even pay attention to his sons and what they have been going through. When Willy lied he was not affecting the people around him, but it did affect his mental state, for eventually he believed everything he was lying about and it did drive him insane.

Willy Loman is an old salesman (63 years old) who is no longer able to earn a living. He receives only a small commission as he ages, and he slowly loses his mind and attempts to kill himself by inhaling gas from the water heater or from crashing his Studebaker. Dave Singleman is his role model, he wants to become well liked and rich. He spends most of his time dreaming instead of doing anything to improve his life. He is obsessed with the post-war interpretation of the American Dream. In the end, he kills himself by crashing his car, hoping to get the life insurance money for his family.

Willy wasnt all bad, he was just a confused man with alot of problems. His problems begin with not being able to make it to Yonkers on his trip around New England. Willys has been on the road most of the time for thirty four years. Hes physically and mentally drained. The reader cant help but sympathize with Willy as no one wants to end up in the position hes in. Willy has to borrow money from his next door neighbor to

Colin Powell once said, “Success is a result of perfection, hard work, learning from failure, and persistence” ("Colin Powell Quotes"). In Death of a Salesman, by Arthur Miller, Willy Loman is an unsuccessful salesman because he did not learn from his failures and continue to be persistent. Willy stopped working hard, which led to a salary based on commission, and finally being fired. Willy had no income because he did not sell his product, which created many finical and loyalty problems for him. He is an unsuccessful father because did not create a strong bond with his sons because he is deceitful and his high standards for them.

Arthur Miller’s play Death of a Salesman follows the tragic descent of a nobody, Willy Loman. Willy Loman can be characterized as an extremely flawed character, full of ego and pride, completely oblivious to the concept of working hard to reap the benefits of life, remaining hopeful past the limit he should be allowed to be. These flaws all define his character, and eventually, his downfall. Miller uses the characters that exist around Willy Loman to define him. Willy’s son, Biff Loman, is Willy’s focus throughout the book, and their interactions offer insight into Willy’s character.

This is what Willy has been trying to emulate his entire life. Willy's need to feel well-liked is so strong that he often makes up lies about his popularity and success. At times, Willy even believes these lies himself. At one point in the play, Willy tells his family of how well-liked he is in all of his towns and how vital he is to New England. Later, however, he tells Linda that no one remembers him and that the people laugh at him behind his back. As this demonstrates, Willy's need to feel well-liked also causes him to become intensely paranoid. When his son, Biff, for example, is trying to explain why he cannot become successful, Willy believes that Biff is just trying to spite him. Unfortunately, Willy never realizes that his values are flawed. As Biff points out at the end of the play, "he had the wrong dreams."

Willy started to become delusional. He started to merge the past and the present together. He couldn't distinguish reality from past life. He believed this was lowering his self-worth. Linda even told the boys “attention, attention must finally be made to such a person. You call him crazy- you don't have to very smart to know what the trouble is. This man is exhausted. I tell you there’s more good in him than other people.” His wife knew he was a good man but had a lot of pressures on top of everything that they were going through. Biff even told Miss Forsythe that his father was “a fine, troubled prince. A hard working unappreciated prince.” Willy had many redeeming qualities but his fatal flaw ended up killing him in the end and that is a true

Willy's desire to feel cherished is so tenacious that he regularly conjures lies about his popularity and achievement. Willy even believes his own lies occasionally. At a certain point in the play, Willy tells his family of how

Miller explains what Willy does and there is some foreshadowing of his death. By the title alone, we know that he is going to die. In act one, we find out that he never became a successful salesman and he viewed himself as a failure. Willy’s failure was apparent in his business and his family life. He wasn’t a good salesman.

Willy treats his wife Linda like she is just there to support him and that’s it. Willy and Linda’s relationship is one sided because Linda tries to help Willy, but then Willy acts like she isn’t there most of the time. On page 1478, Linda says “Isn’t that Wonderful?”. Then Willy says “Don’t interrupt. What’s wonderful about it? There’s fifty men in the City of New York who’d stake him.” This Quote shows how Linda is trying to be supportive and how that she isn’t interrupting Willy. Just Willy doesn’t really caring about Linda, but his own gain. Willy in this is scene talking how he will get rich through Biff and Happy’s business and not trying himself. Willy and Linda’s is not a good relationship because he disrespects her and Willy has cheated

Willy was a failure in his life he tried his best to have a perfect happy marriage with loving sons, and a job that rewards him for his hard work. Willy is quite an insecure guy. He tries to make himself feel better by lying to himself and his family. In his world, Willy is a hugely successful salesman. In act one Willy says, “They don’t need me in New York. I’m the New England man. I’m vital in New England.” (Find page number) Willy falsely insists that he is critical in his business in order to