Willy Loman & the American Dream

Even this dream has changed In recent times, particularly after Instead of perseverance and audacity, salesmanship enters the erroneous dream's basis. Salesmanship indicates an evident aspect of trickery: the art of selling a product no matter the usefulness of the product. Profit is ultimately the justification to making a sale (Coalman 132-133). Repercussions can be catastrophic to all people surrounded and supported by a person who is affected by a false dream. Miller proposes two thoughts on the American Dream in Death of a Salesman.He starts off saying that we all have dreams, whether they are singular or numerous, straight forward or shady. Miller impresses upon the viewer that dreams control everyone's lives, but it is when people have the wrong dreams, it slowly starts to eat away at the person following the dream and his/ her family(Obduracy 89). Throughout Death of a Salesman, Miller criticizes two aspects of the modern American Dream and the people following it by showing how they affect Wily and the people around him.Miller first finds fault with the aspect of â€Å"hitting it big† and exemplifies this throughout Willis career. Wily relies on two things to keep him going during his endless time as a road man. The first of which is hard work. Unlike some of the salesmen that Wily knows who make large commissions with very little effort and the people who buy from him that laugh at all the trouble he goes through, Wily, each year, manages Just enough to keep scraping by. Though, he hopes that one day he will hit It big.When Wily realizes that his dream Is unattainable, he focuses his emotions on Biff, who becomes victim to Wally's dream of the â€Å"get-rich-quick† Idea. (Obduracy 90-91 ) No matter what case, business success Is not achieved through being regarded as a Goodman, success Is achieved through the art of salesmanship. The contrary to this false assumption Is seen In the three most affluent men In the play. Howard, Wally's emp loyer, does not want to cope with his dream, and Instead of handing Wily the promotion that Wily believed he deserved, he lays Wily off of his sales position because of his inability to produce.Ben, Will's brother, the most affluent of all characters, obtained his wealth through the contrary thought of occupational opulence no matter if he was liked or not. Lastly, Charley, Will's neighbor, does not want to listen to his views on business success, but he does supply Wily with a job so e can somewhat continue to support Nils Tamely (Mosey ) I en only Deluge In ten play to have succeeded off his character in the business world was Dave Signalman (Mosey 16). After the premier of Death of a Salesman, critics often describe the play as a denouncement of post-depression capitalism.The blue-collar Loan family had become prey to the false chase of wealth. After 34 years of Willis struggle to hit it big, he was thrown out a failure. Willis monetary achievement should have depended on the arb itrary nature between salesmen and clients. Miller clarifies that Willis dilemma is not only the societies fault, but also his own (Dungarees 68). Miller's next denounced aspect was Willis false notion that being well liked was ultimately the goal of occupational success. Despite many situations pointing toward the contrary, Wily fails to recognize the fault in his plan.Being well liked, to Wily, means more than making money. Willis kids are caught in the midst of his dream and develop different opinions about their father's failing dream. Biff, the oldest son, recognizes his father's false hopes and is driven to make sure he does not fall down he same path(Coalman 134-135). In. Order to achieve Willis view of business success on the basis of being â€Å"well liked,† he must have strong personality traits in the essential social aspects, and these traits are not evident in Wily.The dream of business success was well in Willis mind although, â€Å"The meaning of that need ext ends beyond the accumulation of wealth, security, goods and status† Jacobson CTD. In Mosey par. 10). Many financial troubles arose for Wily, but he never sought to relinquish these debts by striving for business success by means of salesmanship. Like Dave Signalman, Wily wants to be remembered as a big name who was well liked by everyone. In the end, he imagines that numerous crowds would show up at his funeral, but only five people showed up.Unlike true business success, Wily was still caught up on being well liked. Business success, in Will's mind, comes solely from character, and it is seen when he complains to his wife Linda (Mosey par. 10), â€Å"They seem to laugh at me†¦ ‘ don't know the reason for it, but they pass me by. I'm not noticed†¦ ‘ Joke too much†¦ Elm fat. I'm very-foolish to look at, Linda†¦ Lam not reusing to advantage, maybe† (Miller 37). While Wily might represent a product from the American society, society is no mo re at fault than Wily is himself.If people are in this similar predicament, society should not be looked at for the resolution of the problem, but they, themselves, should be looked at for the solution. Will's moral principles are lacking in every aspect. His want to be well liked among his peers overrides work (Dysentery 117-118). Dysentery writes, â€Å"Like Wily, the successful American from the time of the pioneers has had grandiose visions of success, but unlike Wily he has labored to ring them to reality' (118). At the time of Willis death, he accepts, but does not understand that he has failed in life.The reason for why had been evident for years, but Wily does not accept the idea that he is a, â€Å"Poor salesman with corrupt dreams† (63). Wily goes through his career believing that he was popular among the others, but Miller conveys quite the contrary, when five people attend his funeral. Wily dies under the assumption that his life insurance money will be used to c ontinue his conformed dream (Dangerous 63 ) Dangerous writes, â€Å"In toner words, Wily Tall to make ten outside world a home because he has always presented a fake front to the outside† (64).Every person around the world who has ever experienced loneliness and removal from society, and has ever dreamt of being congruous in what seems to be a malicious world, is displayed in Wily Loan. Miller morphs both past and present and puts the viewer into Willis mind to exhibit the faults in a persons idea of a â€Å"get- rich-quick-scheme,† and the false inclination of the American Dream deprived of knowing how invalid and empty the values that clings to in the corruptible American society.Instead of owning up to his mistakes and failures by following this false notion, Wily attempts to elude responsibility by solving these complex problems with simple unattainable solutions (Central paragraph 18). Miller's criticism of the American Dream ultimately condemns the people for fal ling into the false notion of the get-rich-quick scheme and the idea of business success based on the premise of being well like. T. E. Lawrence, a British military strategist, once wrote, All men dream: but not equally.Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses f their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dream with open eyes to make it possible (CTD in Obduracy 94) This exemplifies the corruptness of Willis dream that was brought about overnight and the realism that is underlying in everyone's dreams. Initially, it appears preposterous to question some dreams to be unattainable and egotistic, but shouldn't dreams be unattainable?