Comparison Of Willy Loman In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman

In the Death of a Salesman, a play written by Arthur Miller, the father Willy Lohman greatly impacts the lives of his sons Biff and Happy. The expectations he sets are selfish. Biff and Happy know that all their father wants is for them to become successful businessmen. While trying to teach them how to succeed, Willy actually damaged them. He hurt Biff by going too easy on him in his childhood years, showing him the harsh reality of lies, and not letting him make the-what do you want to do when you grow up- decision on his own. He also scarred Happy by not paying him much attention and showing him a life full of deception, both internally and externally, is okay. Willy Loman is a sixty-three year old salesman that is unstable, delusional, and a horrible father whose whole life was spent in the hopes of becoming a well-known salesman. Popularity was how Willy measured success, but ironically, he was never popular or well liked. Arrogance was his way of disguising the anxiety and self-doubt …show more content…
In the play, Happy tells his parents that he is an “assistant buyer”, when in reality he is the “assistant to the assistant buyer” (Miller 1057). Deceit came honestly for Happy since he was surrounded by it his whole life. Like his father, Happy believed that success came from being popular and handsome, not from being smart. Growing up, Happy was told “be liked and you will never want” by his father, Willy (1014). Throughout the play, Happy tried so hard to be just like his father. Once at a restaurant, Happy tried to impress a girl, saying that “at west point [he] was called Happy” (1055). This proved that not only was Happy a liar like Willy, but also a womanizer. When Willy Lohman killed himself, it left Happy eager to live for him; a life of dreams and not a reality. Happy was born into deception and he will end just like his father, with the death of a