Similarities Between Biff And Happy Loman

Unfortunately, for Willie, Biff is not entirely sure of the purchase he makes, evidenced by the dissatisfaction that Biff expresses with “what it takes to build a future” as a businessperson. When Biff converses with Happy about the career he wants, the reader discovers that Biff seeks a future that involves the great outdoors, not the confined existence of a businessperson. Instead of voicing his desires to his father, Biff keeps these thoughts to

Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman offers a distinct commentary on the American Dream, best explored in the death of its protagonist, Willy Loman. Almost immediately before Willy and his wife Laura are to make their final payment on their twenty-five year mortgage and take full ownership of their house, Willy, crazed and desperate, commits suicide. As his family mourns and praises him, Willy’s eldest son, Biff, bemoans, “He had the wrong dreams. All, all, wrong…He never knew who he was” (Miller 111). This occurrence sheds light on the truth Miller hoped to convey: The American Dream – what should be equated with home, family, and happiness – may all too often be corrupted into something much more superficial. It may be warped into the

While Biff is in some ways desperate to impress his father, he is also conscious about the fact that Willy has failed his attempt to be successful in his career. He considers his dad’s dreams materialistic and unreachable. As a matter of fact, in the Requiem, even after his father’s death, Biff says: “He had the wrong dreams. All, all wrong.” Unlike Happy and Willy, Biff is self-aware and values facts; Willy never was a successful salesman and he never wanted to face the truth. On the other hand, Biff is conscious about his failures and the weaknesses of his personality. During an argument with his father, Biff admits that his dad made him “so arrogant as a boy” that now he just can’t handle taking

Despite his son’s popularity in high school, Biff grows up to be a drifter and a ranch-hand. Willy’s own career falters as his sales ability flat-lines. When he tries to use “personality” to ask his boss for a raise, he gets fired instead. Willy’s “definition” of the American Dream is all wrong, due to the way his own sons turned out to be.

Biff’s trouble with seeking the truth about himself is a development that is seen from the past and present parts of the play. This adversity was due to the fact he assumed no values of his own, but accepted those of Willys personal attractiveness and being well liked. This concept of himself is discouraged when he went to visit Billy Oliver for a business proposition and had failed. Biff had said, “I realized what a ridiculous lie my whole life has been”. Here Biff is coming to terms with who he is, developing a different and mature mindset. The lie wasn't only about how he perceived himself, but of how others perceived him; an idea of what he aspired to be influenced by his father.

As stated before, Happy is only in this for himself, he is selfish and would push his father aside in a second if it would not make him look like a huge jerk, since the father is just a high maintenance baby to him. For some reason, though, Happy feigns interest in the plan to go out west and start a farm with Biff, “Listen, why don’t you come out west with me?” (Miller 23).

Happy Loman is the younger Loman brother and lacks any sense of will or poetic want of freedom like his older brother, Biff. Happy has always stayed close to home due to his Oedipal Complex. Happy idolized his father growing up which led him to seek similar career opportunities and indulge in Delusions of Grandeur. Happy often lies to not only make himself feel more important, but to impress other people,

Willy’s biggest issue with his son is that he let him down by not being any more successful than him. He feels like Biff is failing on purpose just to make him look bad. Although, he has no decent job and is single; Biff has become disoriented about life. Earlier in the play Biff tells Happy, “I tell ya Hap, I don't know what the future is. I don't know - what I'm supposed to want” (Miller266). Biff once looked up to his father as a role model, but lost all faith in him once finding out that he was having an affair. Ever since he has rejected Willy’s commitment of being a husband and also a father. To add to his ruins are Willy’s ideas of how Biff should get ahead in life. Willy taught Biff that popularity was the right way to get to the top, rather than hard-work and dedication. Trying to live by his dad’s standards caused Biff to fail high school and become unable to put forth the effort to become

All his life, Biff is told that he is going to be a success solely because he is well-liked. Biff adopts his father's idealistic attitude and mind set because all he wants to do is please his father. So much pressure is put on Biff when he is young, and he is ready to accept it until the day he sees his father with "the woman". That is the day Biff lost all respect for himself and for his father. That incident changes Biff's views on the world, he goes from being an idealist to a realist in a heartbeat.

Through the character of Biff Loman, Miller illustrates the survival of the American Dream. The dream is cultivated in Biff as seen in his personal happiness. Biff was becoming this person Willy wanted him to be; he was “well-liked” and a kleptomaniac because he wanted to make his father happy. He always went by what his father told him to do until when Biff walked into the affair between Willy and “The Woman.” This was Biff’s turning point; he realized that his father was a “phony liar” and didn’t want to be like him (1321). He was devastated from this event which led him to give up on going to summer school. From there, Biff left the family and began his independent life to work for “twenty or thirty different kinds of jobs.” He felt that all of them turned out the same until he began working on farms in Nebraska, North Dakota, Arizona, and Texas;

Sources of his situation are sheltered in the past. Biff constantly followed his father’s orienteer that charm and good look are the only tickets to promising future and success. But once he didn’t pass math exam, Biff in despair rushes to his dad and finds him in the room with another woman. Exactly at this moment, Biff’s world falls apart, all his values are wiped out. Willy was his role model, Biff sincerely trusted him, but suddenly he finds out that his dad always lied.

He gives up on his dreams of being rich and prepares to return to a simple life he enjoys. Also being back home and building a stronger relationship with his father,makes him realize how he wants to help Willy. While Biff is speaking, he mentions why he gives up the idea of being successful.“BIFF: He walked away. I saw him for one minute. I got so mad I could’ve torn the walls down! How the hell did I ever get the idea I was a salesman there? I even believed myself that I’d been a salesman for him! And then he gave me one look and — I realized what a ridiculous lie my whole life has been! We’ve been talking in a dream for fifteen years. I was a shipping clerk.” (page 76). He believed this was his only chance of being rich so when his old boss didn’t recognize him , he knew he wasn’t gonna get anywhere . This is when he dumped the idea of being successful. Throughout most of the play, he procrastinates for a simpler life. So the acceptance of the thought of the American Dream not happening, works out well for Biff. A very important aspect through this play is the relationship between Biff and Willy. Biff saving Willy from suicide shows just how much he want to help his father. In act 1 page 51 :Willy [staring through the window into the moonlight]: “Gee, look at the moon moving between the buildings!” [biff wraps the tubing around his hand and quickly goes up the stairs.]This shows biff wanting to protect Willy because he removed the tubing willy was using to try and kill himself, something Linda was telling him about in the beginning of the book. While helping his father Biff also realizes that he is ready to return to a simple life he enjoys. In act 1 pages 13 and 14, Biff even invites his brother Happy to live with him out West to start up a ranch and speaks about it with enthusiasm.Biff says to Happy, “ Why don't you come out West with me?... mabe we could buy a ranch.Raise cattle, use our

Biff and Happy idolized their father when they were young. The stories they were told made them picture their father as a popular, successful, well-known salesman. As Biff grew up, he found himself being told things about his father like "A salesman has to dream, it comes with the territory." At the end of the story when Linda says they we free, Biff is free to realize

Ben, Willy’s older brother, believes that his American dream was that he started out with little, and ended up being very successful. It is ironic, because Ben brags that he came out of the African jungle a rich man, so he did not necessarily achieve the American dream, since his wealth began in Africa. Although Ben is not alive anymore, he frequently appears in Willy’s dream and can be considered as a symbol of the success that Willy desires. Another character who struggles with trying to pursue the American Dream is Happy, Willy’s youngest son. Happy possesses many of the same traits as Willy and lives the lie of the American Dream. Happy shows many signs of delusion, even believing that he is in a higher position in his store than he really is. Another character, Biff, the oldest son, also struggles with the idea of the American Dream. Biff’s main struggle throughout the play is between pleasing his father or pleasing himself. Willy wants Biff to inherit his world of sales, but Biff finds himself happier outdoors and is a farmhand. At the end of the day, Biff realizes that his happiness is more important than being rich and achieving the American dream. He returns to the farm where he makes less than $35 a week and does manual labor. Biff can also be considered a relatable character because he redefined his version of the American dream.

Biff and Happy once deeply respected and looked to their father for advice and encouragement, as in the past Linda says “few men are idolized by their children the way you are”⁶, but as they realise his advice was false and he had been living a lie throughout life. As soon as Biff finds out about his father’s affair he no longer respects him and Willy remains unable to win back his trust. “You fake! You phony little fake”⁷. Willy feels that by his suicide, it will prove to Biff that he was truly committed to providing for his family. He still believes that Biff will become successful by having the money from his life insurance showing how he never learnt from his mistakes. “Can you imagine that magnificence with twenty thousand dollars in his pocket? ...When the mail comes he’ll be ahead of Bernard once more”⁵. It is more tragic that Biff is the one who realises that “he had the wrong dreams”⁴ at his funeral. Rather than feeling proud, Biff he pities his father. Ironically it is