Relationship Between Biff And Happy In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman

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In Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller paints the relationship of Willy and his two sons, Biff and Happy, through the dreams of living a successful life but achieving that success in the wrong manner. He wants his kids to live a better life than he had to but he had no clue on how togain this success the correct way. This wrong teaching built a wedge in their relationship with neither being successful and their father never letting them hear the end of it. His high expectations deemed foolish with his many failures at life and even indulging in an affair, guiding his sons down the wrong path of life. Willy’s dreams of having a successful life in the future are lived through the ones of his children because he couldn’t find a way to achieve …show more content…

He leads his sons to believe the same ludicrous keys to success, pointing them in the same direction of failure. Everyone but Willy sees fault in his judgement as “his old friends, the old buyers that loved him so and alwaysfound some order to hand him in a pinch -- they’re all dead, retired” (Miller 32). With these factors counting against him, Willy still has not realized his life is at a standstill, not moving at all and he’s failing. His entire life he’d depended on the help of other people. Although he wants his sons to live a successful life, he’s teaching them the wrong points of gaining that particular lifestyle. He allows them to believe his life is the perfect example of the American Dream Despite the guidance of their father, Biff seems to have the working world figured out. He’s spent his entire life trying to figure out his purpose through different kinds of work “for the sake of a two week vacation, when all you really desire is to be outdoors with your shirt off. And always have to get ahead of the next fella. And still-- that is how you build a future” (Miller …show more content…

PeninstenAP Literature18 December 2017brother on how to deal with Biff but insists he’ll turn out “to be a worm like Bernard” (Miller 22). Him being a worm landed him the riches and success Willy could only dream of. Bernard earned his achievements through education which is what he want for Biff because he actually has a chance but Willy can’t seem to see that. He regretted not attending Alaska with his brother but this is where his fault of finding success comes in. He thought success comes in the form of luck rather than hard work. He admits “that man was a genius” (Miller 22). He idolized him but also hated him for his lifestyle at the same time. He was jealous. He believed he should be living the same life but instead he lived the horrid realities of his life.Willy made a lot of mistakes in his life which set the tone to all of the relationships he encountered throughout his life. He decided to live a life full of lies and dreams and dependency on the likes of others but chose to blame others for his faults. He taught his sons the wrong routesto success, forcing them in the same miserable life he lived of never being satisfied. Willy did a lot of dreaming but fell short of turning them into a

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