How Does Willy Fail In Death Of A Salesman

In Death of a Salesman, by Arthur Miller, Willy Loman’s life seems to be slowly deteriorating. It is clear that Willy’s predicament is of his own doing, and that his own foolish pride and ignorance lead to his downfall. Willy’s self-destruction involved the uniting of several aspects of his life and his lack of grasping reality in each, consisting of, his relationship with his wife, his relationship and manner in which he brought up his children, Biff and Happy, and lastly his inability to productively earn a living and in doing so, failure to achieve his “American Dream”.

In Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, Biff Loman silently questions his ability to fulfill his father’s wishes. His father, Willie Loman, holds high expectations for Biff’s future and constantly brags to others about how successful Biff will be. Out of respect for his father, Biff conforms to the path that Willie has planned for him. In the beginning, Willie lives vicariously through his son, Biff, who has no choice but to conform in order to preserve father-son respect. However, when the mutual respect that his father holds so dear dissolves, Biff’s concealed questions expand their influence from his thoughts to his actions as Biff becomes his own man.

While the play primarily focuses on Willy’s dream, Death of a Salesman also observes Biff and his American Dream, which may be construed as the “right” one. Compared to his father’s, Biff’s dream is a simple one: own a ranch and labor in the countryside close to nature, happy and content. And yet as his father increasingly pressures him to pursue a dream more aligned to his own, Biff experiences an identity crisis of sorts, desperately seeking to please Willy by taking a job in business but always failing in his efforts. Eventually, he realizes that he cannot be his father, and, at Willy’s funeral, contrasts his earlier statement regarding Willy’s state of mind with one regarding his own person: “I know who I am, kid” (Miller 111). Though at the start of the play it was Willy who thought Biff lost, it is now the reverse. Willy, with his aspirations for renown and major success, found himself perpetually adrift in the world, struggling to make ends meet and maintain his family ties. And yet while Willy suffered at the hands of his American Dream, Biff prospered (although not monetarily) in his “proper” American Dream, experiencing true contentment in his craft. While Willy faced constant confusion and an almost bipolar personality disorder owing to his erroneous endeavors, Biff’s main insecurities and difficulties were those brought on by his father’s notion of success. In other words, Willy’s American Dream caused nothing but suffering for him and those he loved, while Biff’s American Dream would have allowed him peace of mind had it not been for his

In “Death of a Salesman” by Arthur Miller, in the Act I, the author emphasizes the relationship between Willy and Linda in different ways by showing the love of Linda towards Willy and how she admires him. And also, she always shows her patient when Willy gets angry easily. The relationship between Willy and Biff is different from the past. Willy’s relationship with Biff is complicated. Biff is everything for Willy and Biff believed that Willy is the greatest father in the world, but in the present Biff doesn’t think like that anymore.

In Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, the eldest son, Biff, loses faith in his father because he caught his father having an affair with a woman at the hotel. Before the ordeal, Biff had looked up to his dad and trusted what he said, he believed his father had integrity and after discovering the truth he doesn’t trust that his father is an honest man. This is important in terms of the theme of delusion/avoidance of painful reality because Willy chooses not to be honest to his profession and dreams so he is stuck in a vicious cycle of pain and shame of his life. Willy never face the reality that he isn’t the best business man and that it is just not his dream, he then faces delusions that he is great at his job because he is living the American

In the play Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman is the main character and he has high expectations for his one boy Biff. He wants Biff to be like him but he pushes him to more than he can handle. Willy is an older man who is starting to lose his mind. Willy has mental problems which causes him to see things and do things, he also attempts to kill himself a couple of times. Will one day was driving in his car and he all of a sudden he forgot he was driving, “No, its me, its me. Suddenly I realize I’m goin sixty miles an hour and I don’t remember the last five minutes. I’m-- I can’t seem to-- keep my mind to it.” This quotes shows how he keeps forgetting things that have happened. Willy also is a salesman for a job and he has to travel a lot but he does not like to travel so he tries to change what he does. He tries by going to his boss and asking about the job where he can stay in one spot and not travel. He asks to work in one spot and offers to be payed less, once his boss doesn’t go with the plan he gives another price range, “I tell ya, Howard. The kids are all grown up, y’know. I don”t need much any more. If I could take home---well, sixty-five dollars a week, i could swing it.” “Howard, all I need to set the table is fifty dollars a week.” These two quotes shows how he kept offering lower and lower when he didn’t get the job. Willy is very similar to Troy Maxson. Troy and Willy expect the same out of their boys, to be successful. Troy was a big sports person and wants his son to be the same, “Though he used to be able to

      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).

Arthur Miller’s play Death of a Salesman follows protagonist Willy Loman in his search to better his and his family’s lives. Throughout Willy Loman’s career, his mind starts to wear down, causing predicaments between his wife, two sons and close friends. Willy’s descent into insanity is slowly but surely is taking its toll on him, his job and his family. They cannot understand why the man they have trusted for support all these years is suddenly losing his mind. Along with his slope into insanity, Willy’s actions become more aggressive and odd as the play goes on. Despite Willy and Biff’s “family feud”, his two sons Happy and Biff truly worry about their father’s transformation, Happy saying: “He just wants you to make good, that’s all. I

This modernized tragedy, Death of a Salesman, illustrated the last days of life for poor Willy Loman. Realistic dramas, emotionally, physiologically, and spiritually, this action-filled play occurred in the present. When the play goes back into the past, it makes the audience feel as if they have drifted into the past, almost like a dream. In some of the scenes, Biff and Happy appeared as if they are in high school, but only their father, Willy, can see them. This method is often referred to as using a flashback. Using this “flashback” method, Willy’s older son, Ben, makes an appearance as well, and this is whom Willy turns to for advice and talks to when he becomes lonely. This play is not only complicated because it goes back and forth from the present and past, but because it shows all the betrayal in Willy’s life and all of the lies he told. As a woman, it is easy for us to point fingers at Willy and say that it is all his fault, but that is just a feminist point of view.

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.

In Arthur Miller’s play, “Death of a Salesman”, Biff Loman demonstrates a change in character through his relationship with his father, Willy Loman.It is with the fall of Willy that Biff rises as a character despite not being sure of his identity. Biff realizes that the pointless direction his life is taking, is caused by his father.For example, Biff left Texas because after being influenced by his father so much, he, like Willy, believed he was wasting his life.It wasn’t until later on in the play that Biff became aware of his actions and decided to change his ambitions and way of thinking. It was because he left Texas to return back home that Willy believes that Biff is letting his potential go to waste and that he has no idea on what to

In Arthur Miller’s Death of the Salesman, mental illness gradually builds distress for Willy’s thought process pressuring Biff to have internal conflicts. Repetition becomes an opportunity to damage the mind. Feeling unwell, Willy is unable to work and retain functional relationships. Biff struggles to accept himself as Willy’s illness unfolds. Dissatisfaction grows between Willy and Biff while they attempt to handle the stress.

In Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman, the tragic hero, is an old salesman that has two sons, Biff and Happy. Willy had this dream that his sons would eventually become huge and successful business men and complete the dream that he never achieved. Willy became so set on this dream that if it were to not happen he would feel as if he was a failure as a father. Willy’s dream that he had turned into an expectation was not

Family relationships always have a way of playing a key role for the duration of most literary pieces. According to Arthur Miller’s novel, Death of a Salesman, the interaction of Willy and his sons, Happy and Biff, shows that family ties usually are connected either physically or emotionally in some way or another. Willy Loman is just like every father in a father/son bond, yet all he wants is to be a part of his son’s life. Even though Biff and Happy admire and have so much love for their father when they are younger, later down the road when they are older suddenly they realize he had failed to prepare them for the real society in life.

The Importance of Biff's Role in "Death of a Salesman" The play "Death of a Salesman", by Arthur Miller, follows the life of Willy Loman, a self-deluded salesman who lives in utter denial, always seeking the "American Dream," and constantly falling grossly short of his mark. The member's of his immediate family, Linda, his wife, and his two sons, Biff and Happy, support his role. Of these supportive figures, Biff's character holds the most importance, as Biff lies at the center of Willy's internal conflicts and dreams , and Biff is the only one in the play who seems to achieve any growth. Biff's role is essential to the play because he generates the focus of Willy's conflict for the larger part, his own