Betrayal In Death Of A Salesman

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Outline THESIS: In Death of a Salesman, Willy believed that his sons betrayed his dream and dedication to make them better candidates to suit his “American Dream” due to his infatuation with the idea of the “American Dream” coming to people who are “well liked and personal attraction”, but in actuality, he betrayed his wife Linda and Willy feels guilty for it. I. Willy believed that Biff is betraying his “American dream” for wanting a simple life and Happy is living Willy’s dream, but he also wants to escape it. i. “How can he find himself on a farm? Is that a life? A farmhand?” ii. “Sure, maybe we could buy a ranch. Raise cattle, use our muscles.” iii. “That’s what I dream about, Biff. Sometimes I just want to just rip my clothes off in the middle of the store and outbox the goddam merchandise manager” II. Biff knows of Willy’s betrayal towards Linda but she is oblivious. He figured out that his mother’s stocking was used during the affair, which enrages Willy, but Biff didn’t have the heart to tell his mom. i. “I won’t have you mending stockings in this house! Now throw them out!” ii. “Just don’t lay it all at my feet. It’s between me and him-that’s all I have to say.” iii. “She’s nothing to me, Biff. I was lonely, I was terribly lonely.” III. Willy thinks that Biff wants to betray Willy’s dream out of anger because Biff knows about Willy’s betrayal towards Linda, but Willy also feels like the world is falling on him. i. “You don’t want to be anything, is that what’s behind it?” ii. “The only thing you got in this world is what you can sell. And the funny thing is that you’re a salesman, and you don’t know that.” iii. “Spite, Spite is the word of your undoing! And when you’re down and out remember what did it.” IV. Linda knows ... ... middle of paper ... ...o anything-even death as depicted by Willy in Death of a Salesman. He was first feeling upset, angry, paranoid, and even delusional which are symptoms of depression that needs attention from a psychologist or a friend that could comfort him to prevent thoughts and actions of suicide. In the end, he ended his life because he was internally hurt and when he opens up his guilt, anger had risen against him, feelings of pain, helplessness, and the misery inside of his heart was unbearable. Suicide is a tragedy that now his family would have to live with for the rest of their lives, that’s the biggest sellout of Death of a Salesman, but in actuality, the biggest let down personally was how everyone was adding salt to his wound while he was cutting his heart open begging for help and the ones that added alcohol to his grief was the people he held as the dearest-his family.

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