Death of A Salesman Questions with 100% correct answers.

"A melody is heard, played upon a flute. It is small and fine, telling of grass and trees and the horizon" -Stage directions Flute= eerie, associated with dreams and nature, not drawing attention to itself Horizon= hope is far away/ long gone "Towering, angular shapes behind it, surrounding it on all sides" "Angry glow of orange" -Stage directions Skyscrapers, intimidating, urbanisation Makes Willys home seem small and vulnerable Hostile environment, Willy belittled (no more hope or nature) and seems trapped within his situation "Small fragile seeming home, an air of dream clings to the place, a dream rising out of reality" -Stage directions Lomans seem vulnerable Futility of his dream but still controlling their lives- idea of fate "(Calls with some trepidation)" "(Very carefully, delicately)" "(Helpfully)" -Linda's stage directions Highlights her role within the play, maternal position in the relationship Always treading on eggshells not to upset or damage Willy further Tension "I'm tired to death (The flute has faded away)" -Willy Foreboding, foreshadowing Willy's death His death seems inevitable, fate as flute used to represent hope and dreams "Maybe its your glasses" -Linda Intentional blindness, trying to justify and ignore Willy's flaws as if they were not there Prevents Willy from having his moment of realisation which he keeps nearing closer to with "No i see everything" and "I cant seem to keep my mind to it" Linda being too protective of her husband- dangerous "I'm vital in New England" -Willy Hyperbole, blindness to his true position within society- not vital to anyone even his wife who has to look after him Excessive pride/ hubris in his 'success' he knows he has not actually achieved "Work a lifetime to pay off a house, you finally own it, and theres nobody to live in it" -Willy Evokes pathos Realism Highlights futility of the American dream Foreshadows end of play, Willy's funeral on the day the mortgage is paid off. "The trouble is he's lazy goddammit... there's one thing about Biff- he's not lazy." -Willy Contradicts himself, shows how unsure and unsettled he is, delusional Doesn't know what he believes, no true sense of self even in his opinions on his son Only believes what he is told eg that the American dream is the way of success "I dont want change! I want swiss cheese!" -Willy Cannot cope with change Foreshadows how he doesn't understand how far the business/ capitalist world has progressed and changed from the time of "dave singleman" "His voice has been rising in volume to that of a normal conversation" -Willy's stage directions Highlights how immersed he is in his memories/ fantasies At point where his past is merging with his present and defining his thoughts and feelings "Laughing with him at the theft" -Willy's stage directions Parenting failures due to obsessive belief that you can do or get anything if you are well liked Causes Biff to carry on stealing in adult hood Shows how stupid ad consuming Willy's dream is Could also represent how their own identities have been stolen from them by lying and the pursuit of an unachievable dream "Chevrolet, Linda is the greatest car ever built" -Willy Brand names add to realism in play Highlights society's obsession with material goods that are advertised etc, must have perfect appliances to run perfect home etc, all american dream Believes owning these things equates to success "The man who makes an appearance in the business world, the man who creates personal interest is the man who gets ahead" -Willy Believes appearance is key to success "Be liked and you will never want" -Willy Shallow belief that popularity is most important Ironic as he is not well liked himself "You didn't make me, Willy. I picked you!" -The woman Fulfils Willy's desire to be well liked etc, elevates his pride in his career and appearance Says it is as he "gets so lonely" - flaws in his job, never at home- leads to broken relationships and sense of self Fantasy- believes he is still young and successful when really he is failing and become more and more distanced from his reality "The woman bursts out laughing, and Linda's laughter blends in" -Stage directions Merging of Willy's past and present, tinged constantly with guilt over his affair "Just mending my stockings" -Linda Motif Stockings remind Willy of his guilt/ affair, constantly giving the woman new stockings but allowing his wife to mend her own Willy gives the woman the love that he should be giving Linda Also symbol of material wealth and Willy feels he cannot provide for Linda "I got a job, I told you that. (After a slight pause). What the hell are you offering me a job for?" -Willy Excessive pride prevents him from accepting a potentially better job from Charley as he cannot believe he is worse off than his neighbour- takes offence Blindness to his lack of success and need for some change to alter his tragic fate, and blindness to futility in his dream "If i'd gone with him to Alaska that time, everything would've been totally different" -Willy Regrets not going with Ben who is so successful Resents staying behind to raise a family "Ben! I've been waiting for you so long! Whats the answer? How did you do it?" -Willy Naivety about success, believes there is one definite answer Idolises Ben for his success he sees as effortless Jealousy "Diamonds" -Ben Symbol of success Willy sells diamond watch fob to pay for Biff's course Trys to pass success "When i walked into the jungle, I was 17. When I walked out I was 21 and by god I was rich" -Ben Makes success seem effortless Jungle- symbol of life and the risks you mist face to succeed Walked into jungle to achieve his dreams- took control of his life Repeated twice in willys memory "Stop making excuses for him! He always, always wiped the floor with you" -Biff Shows how poorly Willy has treat Linda despite how she tries to protect him from reality Injustice for Linda, creates pathos "I dont say hes a great man. Willy loman never made a lot of money. His name was never in the paper. Hes not the finest man that ever lived. But hes a human being" -Linda Humanises Willy outside of the American dream Shows there is more to life than the dream and everyone should be treat equally Realism, tells audience the truth "Because I know hes a fake and he doesnt like anybody around who knows!" -Biff Referring to the affair Only Biff knows about the woman which caused his fractured relationship with his Father, Willy sees him as a threat to his appearance/ dream Linda blind to the real truth Biff stays away Pathos for Biff "He's dying Biff" -Linda Blunt, realist language Lindas character has more substance than previously revealed Implies Willy's deterioration has been ongoing for a while, Linda always trying to preserve him just that little bit longer Both their suffering has been ongoing "Every day I go down and take away that little rubber pipe. But when he comes home,I put it back where it was. How can I insult him that way?" -Linda Damaging what pride Willy has left could push him over the edge and catalyse his demise Knows how delicate his sense of self and fractured mind actually is Has power to confront Willy but doesnt- perhaps part to blame for his eventual death "I'd like to buy some seeds" "Nothing'll grow anymore" -Willy/Linda Reality vs fantasy Willy has a hope for growth whereas Linda voices reality that there is no hope Irony, Willy's ending still appears inevitable "I sewed the lining" -Linda Temporary fix- for Willy's problems Undercuts hopefulness in the scene as it will only be temporary and is likely to break once again "Its changing, Willy, I can feel it changing!" -Linda Hope for change/ the future Moment of happiness makes the scenes to come seem even more tragic as there was this moment of hope which seemed as though Willy's demise could be stopped "Hes only a little boat looking for a harbour" -Linda Creates sympathy for Willy Makes him seem vulnerable Linda's sympathetic view on Willy "His name was Dave Singleman... he died the death of a salesman, in his green velvet slippers" -Willy Dave= how Willy views success How he wishes the business world still was Fails to recognise how times have changed Willy has been left behind, again foreshadows his demise as he cannot cope with change "You cant eat the orange and throw the peel away" -Willy Irony- exactly what happens, metaphor- men are consumed and used to the business world's advantage and discarded once they are of no use any more No longer any human sympathy or relationships Salesman just part of production line and can easily be replaced