Death Of A Salesman Quote Analysis

The theme of the American Dream is present in Death of a Salesman. One supporting quote for this is, “Well, I spent six or seven years after high school trying to work myself up. Shipping clerk, salesman, business of one kind or another. And it's a measly manner of existence. To get on that subway on the hot mornings in summer. To devote your whole life to keeping stock, or making phone calls, or selling or buying. To suffer fifty weeks of the year for the sake of a two week vacation, when all you really desire is to be outdoors with your shirt off. And always to have to get ahead of the next fella. And still—that's how you build a future” (Miller 16). Biff has trouble coping with the competition that is part of the American way of life, but

One quote supporting this is, “Funny, Biff, y’know? Us sleeping in here again? The old beds. He pats his bed affectionately. All the talk that went across these two beds, huh? Our whole lives” (Miller 21). In this quote, Happy and Biff talk while visiting their parents in the house where they grew up. Happy’s words reveal a strong bond between the brothers and their good memories of their childhood years. The scene reminds the reader that Willy Loman has provided a home for his family and that his family has shared his dreams. Another supporting quote is, “There were a lot of nice days. When he’d come home from a trip, or on Sundays, making the stoop, finishing the cellar, putting on the new porch; when he built the extra bathroom; and put up the garage. You know something, Charley, there’s more of him in that front stoop than in all the sales he ever made” (Miller 91). These quotes show the character of Death of a Salesman reminiscing on their family life, despite the struggles they faced. The second quote is important because in it Biff is standing at his father’s gravesite, talking to his father’s friend. Biff’s words reveal that in spite of all his differences with his father, he has affectionate memories of their family life. Biff memorializes times when the whole family was together, and his father was working for them all. Biff’s speech also honors the work that Willy Loman put into their family home. The image of Willy Loman working on his house represents the unsung heroism of Willy’s struggle to build something lasting for his