Death of a Salesman Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 4

Death of a Salesman - Essay Example ican Dream† of making a safe and secure life for oneself through sheer dint of hard work and the consequent failure of the dream is at the heart of Arthur Miller’s â€Å"Death of a Salesman†. Some of the plays important characters are Willy Loman, the protagonist who is an aging salesman. His wife Linda is a loyal and devoted housewife. They have two sons namely Biff who is elder and Happy who is the younger of the two. Both the brothers are very unlike each other in many ways and we are going to investigate these characters by comparing and contrasting them. Though Linda knows Willy’s faults yet she tries her best to stand by him. Speaking of her husband she says, Hes not the finest character that ever lived. But hes a human being, and a terrible thing is happening to him. (Linda Loman, Act 1) Biff is Willy’s elder son who is a 34 year old reckless and irresponsible person who finds it extremely hard trying to hold on to a job for a reasonable period of time. He is like the typical â€Å"rolling stone gathers no moss† type and this exasperates Willy his father who tries his best to make something of him, but to no avail. Happy who is Biff’s younger brother, is 32 years of age and is the opposite of Biff where jobs are concerned. He has a steady job and works on a steady and regular basis. However, unlike his brother Biff he does not have enough courage to take risks to improve his present status. He prefers to go on in the same way as when he started without making changes to better himself. Willy is quite envious of his successful businessman neighbor Charley who is a constant reminder of all that Willy is not. Moreover, Charley’s son Bernard was a very hardworking, intelligent and very successful person which proved to be Willy’s sore point because his son Biff Loman was no where near to him. In this context Willy once passed snide remarks saying – â€Å"Bernard is liked, but not well liked† showing his envious attitude. (Biff Loman, Act 1) Biff