The Death of the Salesman, a dramatic play written in 1949, explores the American Dream through Willy Loman and his family. Willy, the protagonist, is 63 years old and has been a traveling salesman all his life. His father was a nomad and roamed across the country in a wagon. His childhood included his father and his older brother leaving when he was young. Despite his commitment and his hard work, the Lomans have always been on the brink of poverty because of his low status within the company.
Willy constantly believes that one day he will get his big break, but ultimately, that day never comes. He was able to raise two children, Biff and Happy, and wants to make sure that they are raised correctly. His insecurities about parenting are suggested to be stemmed from his parents’ abandoning him at a young age. His wife, Linda, keeps him from collapsing by constantly supporting his dreams and illusions. Although Willy devoted his career and service to the company, he is still laid and soon discovers that he is unable to find any other employment, because of background and his lack of family.
Due to Willy’s financial insecurities and false hopes, hallucinations and daydreams were very common due to his unstable mental state. Ben, Willy’s wealthy older brother, recently died and appears only in Willy’s “daydreams.” He symbolizes success, which Willy craves for both himself, but also his sons. He is adventurous and was somehow able to quickly get rich by finding diamonds in the African jungle. Ben’s success depicts the phrase of rags to riches, which Willy interprets as the American Dream being a reality. This causes him to trust Ben’s advice during his imaginations.
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During a conversation, Willy wants to prove to Ben how great his sons are, causing Biff to engage in a fist fight with Ben. Ben wins, but only because he cheated. He informs the boy to never fight clean with a stranger. Similarly, towards the end of the novel, the phrase, “The jungle is dark but full of diamonds”, is repeated multiple times during one of Willy’s hallucinations. The word dark represents the shadows under the trees, which shows the dangers and physical risks that one must take to yield wealth. It also shows how Ben’s success is certainly blemished by his apparent use of cheating to get what he wants.
Unlike Willy, Ben was able to take a risk and stray from the world of fierce ambition and competition. Because Willy was not given any opportunity to expand his career, this represents the failure of the myth of opportunity because of his upbringing. However, the diamond represents a quick way to get rich, which problematizes the American Dream since it shows how it is attainable, but through cheating and not through faithful devotion/service to a legal pathway.
