Willy Loman Is The Cause Of Hi

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Willy Loman is the cause of his own misfortune

Many characters in literature are the cause of their own misfortune. In the play Death of a Salesman by author Miller, Willy Loman is responsible for his misfortune as well as the misfortune of his two sons Happy and Biff. Willy creates his own small world in which he is the boss, everything goes around him, nothing will change and nothing will go wrong. But by thinking this way Willy causes his own misfortune.
Willy brags to his boys that he is well liked, that he is a 'big man';, but in reality he is not. He says that he went to Providence, met the Mayor, had coffee with him. Willy says: 'And they know me, boys, they know me up and down New England'; (Death of a Salesman 30). This comment illustrates how Willy shows off in front of his sons. He says he can park his car in any street in New England, and the cops will protect it like their own. Willy believes that he is a 'number one'; man but at the same time he knows and says that he is not what he dreams about, but he just does not want to admit it. 'You know, the trouble is, Linda, people don't seem to take me… They seem to laugh at me… they just pass me by. I'm not noticed'; (36) says Willy. He knows the fact that he is a total failure and he never admits it. Then Willy mentions that he cannot sell anything and when Linda says that he is the handsomest, he disagrees with her, says he is fat, foolish to look at. Willy tells everyone and believes in the dream that he is well liked, that he is a 'number-one'; man. Thinking that way Willy creates his own little world where he is the boss and he does the things which he should not do causing his own misfortune.
Willy believes in and follows his wrong ideas. And the worst part is that he teaches them his sons Biff and Happy. He thinks that appearance is everything. Willy says: 'Because the man who makes an appearance in the business world, the man who creates personal interest, is the man who gets ahead. Be liked and you will never want'; (33). This comment illustrates Willy's belief in the wrong idea that appearance is everything.

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