Death of a Salesman

Willy Loman is the epitome of a man that wants success so much that he is willing

to die for it. Arthur Miller presents us with a family that has their own conflicts

going on with each other and within themselves. He emphasizes the idea that

having connections and being well liked means nothing if you don’t have the

brains and skill to prove you’re worthy of a good job and good life. Willy is a foil to

this idea and convinces his sons from their youth that all that matters is to be well

liked and you can achieve the American Dream this way. Biff and Happy both

express different sides of Willy. When they were young they were taught by Willy

that the only way to achieve anything in this world was to be respected and well-

liked.

This way of thinking skewed the boys into actually not achieving anything.

Biff is disillusioned with his father when he finds out that he has been cheating on his

motherand he ends up not going to college and has issues with work all stemming from

him not passing math and refusing to redo the grade. Happy does not have such a

glamorous life either but unlike Biff he puts up a façade that alludes to the fact that

maybe he indeed does have a pretty good life. Happy is proud like his father and refuses

to be a failure.

Willy can no longer keep up the illusion that he is living a good life. His endless strife for the American Dream has lead him to lie to his family about his success and about his fidelity to his wife, Linda. From the beginning of the story there are flashbacks and daydreams that Willy has. Comparing past and present Willy, the audience can tell he is depressed. The story ends with his suicide. He did not reach the American Dream. It was his only goal and because he failed he decided to end his life.

A key difference in the film and play is that the failure of both Biff and Happy are downplayed in the film, while in the play they are expanded and used to fuel Willy’s demise.