This line, shouted by Biff at his father in Arthur Miller’s play Death of a Salesman, perfectly sums up Biff’s exasperation at his family’s lies, particularly those of the titular patriarch, Willy. Willy is falling apart because the only thing he has is his hopes and dreams. He creates these extremely specific ideas of success for him and his sons. When they do not, and can not, achieve these goals, he ignores the reality and continues to belief in his false hope. Biff is NOT going to be a football star. Willy is NOT well-liked and is NOT a good salesman. His seeds are NOT going to grow. My initial reaction to the play was that Willy Loman is a horrible man, overly pre-occupied with his own perceived masculinity and self-worth; a man who damages …show more content…
If they never told us anything, then they thought we would know nothing. But we always knew. We weren’t surprised when our parents told us they were getting divorced, we had know for months and months. Our father was coming home later and later, drunker and drunker. And his business trips were not to were he said they were. But we never talked about it, it was always easier to ignore the truth. Keep with the lie, keep with the hope.
My father has been married four times, three of which I’ve known about. The one before I was born I’m not supposed to know about, but my brother and I do, we just don’t talk about it.
My father had a girlfriend within two months of my parents divorce. He probably had her before then, we just found out two months after. My dad did not tell us, but we knew. That was until, sick of the lies, I brought it up to him. I will never forget the anger and fear in his eyes as we finally tore down the lies that had kept us safe for so long. The hope we kept in those lies was gone, faced with the grim reality of my father’s sadness.
I think my father is happier now. Now that he has admitted his sadness in some regard. Now that he has divorced my mother and moved back to the village. Maybe he will start writing again, find his true
Growing up with a father who blamed me for the death of his wife which of course broke through any happiness, care or love he felt for me his own son. My house was always filled with dark gloomy colors and we never really had guests over at all. My father was a mystery most people but in his job he had power over people because they were frightened by his just by his presence. It was a very rare pleasure filled with fright when we spoke and I can only think of one time where I got a hint of positive feeling from him. It was a dark, rainy gloomy day and the house never held a promise for the future so I was constantly bored and decided to read some old books from my father’s dusty library. There I sat with a book in hand picking up any knowledge that I possibly could and he walked in and said to me “Montressor, you impress me with act of trying to do something useful”, I replied to him with the only thing I could ever say to him, yes sir. I can only remember the constant hate I would receive from him and it made me think that I would never please
In the book Death of A Salesman, author Arthur Miller shows how cruel life can be through the life of Willy Loman, the main character. His feelings of guilt, failure, and sadness result in his demise.
Arthur Miller’s play Death of a Salesman chronicles a twenty-four hour period where the play’s main character, Willy Loman, suffers from numerous flashbacks which exhibit the less than happy reality he presently faces as he argues with his family. His character suffers a setback in memory, which causes him a great deal of trouble. It could be said that this trouble is invoked by Willy himself, because he is clearly remembering important periods in his life which lead to the current troubles he faces. However, as evidenced by his mood swings, flashbacks, and forgetfulness, there are clear indicators the Loman suffers from Alzheimer’s or dementia.
Willy didn’t care if Biff did well in school; he just wanted him to be a popular football player because he thought that would bring him success in the future. Biff eventually fails math, which leads to his career in football to be over. Seeds are representing growth/potential but also failure. “Nothing’s planted. I don’t have a thing in the ground” (Miller). He wanted to leave something behind that would hopefully grow and prosper. Willy worked his whole life for nothing, he never attained the success and popularity he wanted and neither of Willy’s sons followed the path he wished they did. Biff did not become what Willy wanted him to; instead he hoped to have almost the exact opposite of what his dad wanted. Biff does not agree with his dad’s version of the American Dream.
It is stated by Standage that, “Sandage believes Willy Loman was a success. But the message of the play, he says, is that “if you level off, you have to give up. You might as well not live”” (Baird 25). This is quite ironic because all Willy does is push to be successful and he when he can’t he puts expects his son’s to follow through so he gives up. He constantly reminds them, “the man who makes an appearance in the business world, the man who creates personal interest, is the man who gets ahead” (Miller 67). This is also ironic because Willy is the man who creates personal interest in the business world, but when everyone passes away he is left with nothing but the past to remember. This false reality that Willy creates for Biff brings on the conflicts between the father and son duo due to the fact that Biff fails as a result of the way he was raised. So by the time Biff goes to interview for his first job he thinks that his success will come with no effort
have a nice talk with him. I’ll get him a job selling. He could be
I was raised by my mother and grandmother. They kept my head leveled and taught me that working hard leads to success. I loved them, and they were my role models. I grew up in a middle class family with strong women. I learned independence, and the strong will to never give up. It was the summer of 2005 when my mother re-married, and I was in the eighth grade. My mother was happy because she found the conclusion to her life: a husband. I was ecstatic because I finally had a daddy! My hopes, wishes, and dreams had come true. I felt that God answered my prayers. I loved having a father figure, although I had certain doubts. My uncertainty came from the way he looked at me. He looked at me the way men crave women. However, I concealed my unclear feelings because I did not want to ruin the current circumstances. Unfortunately, all of my suspicions were true.
Willy Loman’s character is capable of making errors. He believes he is a very successful salesman and well liked. He also thinks that the company likes what he is doing. He once said, “I’m the New England man. I am vital in New England” (Miller pg. 32) Because of his false belief about his success Howard fired him. After he got fired charley offered him a job, but he refuses to accept, because he is too proud and jealous to work for Charley. His actions were wrong because at no time was a successful salesman. He is not a powerful character. Willy lives in his fantasies where he is the man. Who goes out to another place and comes out rich, he is love by everyone and admired by his family. In real life, he is lazy and does not live up to his own ideals. “As Aristotle explains, a tragic hero must be one of noble character and must fall from power and happiness.”(Www.ccd.rightchoice.org/lit115/poetics.html) but Willy neither has a noble characteristic nor does he fall from power because he does not have a position of power.
Willy Loman’s feelings of alienation and loneliness are direct psychological results of his interaction with society and the conditions that are found within it. Although, he does not necessarily have the ability or allow himself to have the ability to define his feelings as such, they are still very much a part of his everyday existence. This is evident in his constant bragging and attempted compensation. He does not feel that he is truly a part of society. Indeed, he is not. Miller himself seems to be saying that this is not necessarily a bad thing; this society is not that wonderful. Yet Willy still yearns to be like his brother, Ben, and the other men he sees making up the work force. He desperately wants to command respect and be a part of the group. Although usually he just goes about his business as best he can, he does at times admit his feelings:
“The present and the past coexist, but the past shouldn't be in flashback” -Alain Resnais. The play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller follows the life of a man named Willy Loman, and his family life with his two sons; Biff and Happy Loman, and wife, Linda Loman. Throughout the play, Willy has delusional episodes of past events in life, which he believes he is reliving, and these flashbacks are providing him an escape from dealing with the obstacles he is facing in life. The reader discovers that Willy is having an affair with a mistress titled The Woman, and he retreats to memories of their time together for an ego boost, though in reality he is arguing with his sons. Willy has an encounter with his brother Ben at the same time that he is playing cards with his neighbour Charlie, and because Willy’s mind is so far gone into the memory, Charlie leaves. During this flashback Willy sees his life compared to his successful brother, but he will not accept his lack of skill at being a salesman. His final flashback is a fake encounter he believes he has with his brother, and this progresses to Willy’s final act of suicide. Willy’s flashbacks are evidence that he is delusional because he cannot differentiate between a past event and reality.
Until the twenty-second of March, I thought my parents were happy with each other and that they would be together for the rest of their lives, but that was not the case. I was given no reason to suspect that anything bad was occurring, but when I came home from school that day everything was revealed. My father told me that he had been wanting to speak to me alone. He looked fearful and bit anxious. I knew this conversation was going to be different from every other talk we have had. He started off with, “Please just listen and give me a chance to explain myself before you judge me.” I had nodded
Arthur Miller's, "Death of a Salesman," shows the development and structure that leads up to the suicide of a tragic hero, Willy Loman. The author describes how an American dreamer can lose his self-worth by many negative situations that occur throughout his life. The structure and complications are essential because it describes how a man can lose his way when depression takes over.
Day when he looks at his father and sees an exact copy of himself. Well that's how it was for me ever since I was little and every once in a while I could just picture being just like my dad when I grow up. He is the most responsible, trustworthy, honest, and hardworking person I have ever met. He does have a very short temper and has absolutely no patience but nobody is perfect. I don't think I could ask for a better father.
Willy Loman’s tragic flow leads him to purse the idea that reputation in society has more relevancies in life than knowledge and education to survive in the business. His grand error of wanting recognition drove him crazy and insane and lead to his tragic death. Willy’s hubris makes him feel extremely proud of what he has, when in reality he has no satisfaction with anything in his life. Willy Loman’s sons did not reach his expectations, as a father but he still continued to brag about Biff and Happy in front of Bernard. Willy Loman caused the reader to empathize with him because before his tragic death he did everything he could for his family. Empathy, Hubris , and Willy Loman’s tragic flow all lead him to his death that distend for him the beginning.
My parents never married, and split up when I was 9 months old. By the time I was 4, both would be