Throughout “Death of a Salesman,” Willy Loman stresses his belief that if a man is attractive and well liked, he will succeed. As said in Act I by Willy, “Because a man who makes an appearance in the business world, the man who creates personal interest, is the man who gets ahead. Be liked and you will never want.” (20) Willy believes in the American Dream. He truly does think that a combination of genetics and hard work will open doors. However, as we’ve discussed in this class, other elements will prevent the accomplishment of the American Dream. In Biff’s case, his own indecision about joining the work force hinders the holding of a respectable job. Billy longs to out in the world, working with his hands, but he also wants to make a salary. He attempts several times to get a job, but his distrust of corporate America and his propensity to steal squelch his opportunities. Willy is unable to gain respect because he jokes too often with his customers and colleagues. Happy, like Biff, is called to nature and manual labor, but he stifles these urges and works in a department store to earn a salary. Happy cannot succeed because he is held down by family drama and his immature pursuits of women. Dispute all this disheartening evidence against his rationale about individual opportunity, Willy still chooses to believe that an attractive and liked man will be happy and successful.
Arthur Miller, by having Willy commit suicide and by having Happy and Biff so distracted and unable to create achievable goals, reveals that he does not believe in individual opportunity. Miller shows us that Willy, a somewhat normal family man, is unable to be happy and is eventually ruined by his pursuits of hope. Biff and Happy seem content, but in moments of anguish or distress, they unveil sullen attitudes and disrespect for their father. By making his characters so miserable in their jobs and lives, Miller curses individual opportunity.
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3 comments:
I like what you had to say about each of the characters and their lack of success, and how Willy ignores the truth even when evidence that you need more than good looks to succeed was right in front of him. However, in discussing Miller's view of individual opportunity, you wrote that Biff and Happy seemed content. I don't know if I'm interperating this in the way you intended, but I highly disagree. Biff was constantly moving around because he wasn't content with any of his jobs or situations. Happy is not content because his entire work life is his drive to beat the man on top, which he could never do. This is demonstrated by his "borrowing" of the executives' fiances. I think he's saying, "You can have your job, but I'm just as good as you," because their women chose him over their executive futre-husbands.
I agree with Elmo, I never got the impression that Biff and Happy are happy… content. I also think that Happy isn't necessarily held down by his desire to make a salary and to @$#! with women, but by the way Willy brought him up. Happy becomes stuck in the past the way Willy was, and, at the end, almost seems like he wants to finish what his dad started. Willy put so much of himself into Happy and Biff (although Biff's time alone seems to have straightened him out) that they want the same false reality that he wants.
By the way, I think at one point you combined Willy and Biff and typed "Billy". Rock On!
Your writing on this is somewhat similar to mine, but yours is much more eloquent. I agree with how you used the ideas of Biff to relate to the ideas of MIller. I thought the same thing, that Miller's view on individual opportunity would be similar to Biff's.
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