Siblings In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman
Siblings are often used in literature to show how one household can produce two different, but similar people. This is shown in Arthur Miller’s The Death of a Salesman, where two siblings, Biff and Happy, have similarities and differences. Both Biff and Happy have their fathers trait for building themselves up and making it appear that they are superior to everyone else, however, Biff was always a favorite of his parents and had a lot of expectations, while Happy never received any attention from his parents who had little hope for him. Biff has always been Willy’s favorite child since Biff was very popular and good athlete in school. This made Willy believe that Biff showed a lot of promise and that he was going to be very successful in the …show more content…
In the beginning of the play Happy tells Biff that he works as an assistant merchandise manager at a store saying that “Sometimes I want to just rip my clothes off in the middle of the store and outbox that goddam merchandise manager. I mean I can outbox, outrun, and outlift anybody in that store, and I have to take orders from those common, petty sons-of-bitches till I can’t stand it any more.”(Miller 24) He also goes on to say that “[He’s] got more in [his] pinky finger than [his manager’s] got in his head.”(Miller 24) Happy is really building himself up to Biff make it appear as if he is really extravagant and that all his coworkers are below him, when in reality he is one of a few assistants to the assistant manager. Nonetheless he leads his family to believe that he is on the brink of becoming a manager and thus becoming successful when in reality he is not. Similarly, Biff also lied about which position he held while he was working at a sporting goods store. Biff and Happy concocted a new business plan that would make them both successful, however it relied on outside investments. Biff says that his former employer Bill Oliver “always said he’d stake [him].’(Miller 62) Biff allows everyone, including himself, to believe that he was salesman for Oliver. However, in reality Biff was only a
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2147 Words | 9 PagesIn order for Willy to be a successful father, he needs to feel that his kids are respected and accomplished. However this shows that Willy is such an outsider, because Biff is quite the opposite, as the Bill Oliver that is references has no idea who Biff is. Another example that shows how Willy’s goals and dreams turn him into a misfit is when he asks for a promotion “ Well, tell you the truth, Howard. I’ve come to the decision that I’d rather not travel anymore.” ( Miller 59).
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1082 Words | 5 PagesI know something about it and— WILLY: He knows something about it! You know sporting goods better than Spalding for God’s sake! (Act 1).” Here, he is attempting to convince Biff that, because Biff was a high school football star, he knows more about sporting goods than professionals in the industry.
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1009 Words | 5 PagesBoys! Boys! [Young Biff and Happy appear] Listen to this. This is your Uncle Ben, a great man! Tell my boys, Ben!
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936 Words | 4 PagesThough their examples and outcomes vary, both Hansberry and Miller use miscommunication across generational families to display how transparency and honesty in a family leads to healthy relationships. Arthur Miller uses the lack of communication skills to establish the Lowan household as a dysfunctional family unit. Willy rarely listens to or considers the opinions, views, or differences between his family members. Additionally, Linda is hesitant to stand up for herself or speak up and both Happy and Biff are incapable of communicating in a calm and solution-motivated manner. Willy’s judgemental personality is also key in ensuring that most everyone in the family is un-eager to share personal views and ideas.
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