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Cameron Holmes

3/20/17

Period 5

Down in Flames

From the very beginning in life, individuals are taught to have unrealistic goals and

aspirations. People are told that they should shoot for the stars, even though many fall far short.

If someone has the belief that they can do anything they put their mind to that isnt necessarily a

bad trait. In fact, it is a very commendable one. However, it becomes a problem when a person

feels that they can easily attain these high expectations without any plan in place. A goal without

a plan is simply a wish. When someone begins to set multiple very difficult goals for themselves

without a plan, things will start to become very risky. Success doesn't happen to everyone and it

should be far from assumed that it will. A person who thinks that themselves or someone else

will make it big simply due to the fact that they have some likable qualities is a very slippery

slope to go down. A person who embodies what it means to put blind faith into not only himself,

but his children is Willy Loman from Death of a Salesman. Throughout the course of the play

Willy was a walking metaphor for the theme of unrealistic expectations because he consistently

felt that himself and Biff could make it big in the business world for no apparent reasons other

than the simple and shallow fact that they were both likable and attractive men.

Every person on earth would be lying if they said they've never had unrealistic dreams or

expectations for themselves at some point. In some form or another every individual has high

goals that they wish they could attain, but deep down know they never will. However, in this
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novel, one will consistently find Willy Loman setting wildly unattainable goals for himself. The

author writes,

WILLY: Dont say? Tell you a secret, boys. Dont breathe it to a soul. Someday Ill have

my own business, and Ill never have to leave home any more.

HAPPY: Like Uncle Charley, heh?

WILLY: Bigger than Uncle Charley! Because Charley is not liked. Hes liked, but hes

notwell liked. (Act 1; 37)

Even though it is nice to have an optimistic personality, Willy takes it too far. When he begins to

get the slightest taste of success it goes directly to his head. Since he is doing relatively well at

the moment, he assumes that it will progress over time into him becoming the millionaire he's

always dreamed of being. Present success in no way guarantees future progression. Especially in

the rapidly changing business world that Willy tries to make it in. He pressures himself and

immerses his mind in goals and aspirations in which he has no plan on how to achieve. By

cementing these unrealistic expectations in his constant thoughts he sets himself up for failure.

Willy Loman has all of these unattainable thoughts so often and truly believes that he can

achieve them because if he didnt, his life would immediately spiral out of control. The problem

that comes along with the obsessions for success is that one might pressure those around him,

and thats exactly what happens.

Parents what their children to be happy in life no matter what. Parents want their children

to succeed and even do better then they did in life. However, it becomes a very sticky situation

when the parent starts to pressure their children. When parents start to expect more out of their

kids than they might be capable, its a lose lose situation for all involved. In Death of a Salesman,
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Willy is the one expecting way more out of his son Biff, than Biff is capable of. In the play Willy

states, Certain men just dont get started till later in life. Like Thomas Edison, I think. Or B.F.

Goodrich. One of them was deaf. [He starts for the bedroom doorway.] Ill put my money on

Biff. (Act1; 18). Willy is comparing his son to some of the greatest minds in the history of the

world. He expects his son to grow up and be wildly successful based off of three simple reasons;

hes attractive, he's likable, and he's a Loman. He has these unreasonably high expectations for

his child, that hardly any one can ever live up to. No matter how many times Biff shows that he's

incapable of achieving these standards, Willy continues to believe. To make matters worse, when

Biff finally makes an effort to change Willy only makes things worse. Willy states, Hes

heading for a change. Theres no question. There simply are certain men who take longer to get

solidified. How did he dress? (Act2; 72). When Biff shows the slightest demonstration that he's

trying to make something go himself by going to see Bill Oliver, Willy is automatically

convinced that everything will go perfectly. He continually exhibits these unrealistic expectations

towards his son because he is simply unwilling to accept the fact that Biff isnt really cut out for

the path that he has for him. Setting unrealistic expectations for yourself is already problematic

enough, but when you drag others into it, the problem is just that more visible.

Those close to Willy Loman always knew he had a problem with tempering his

expectations. The problem was that Willys thoughts and beliefs were so wild that nobody could

really temper them. Once Willys life first started to come crashing down upon him nobody

wanted to pile on to make matters worse, until it was too late. Willys longtime friend Charley

spoke in defense of Willy on the day of the funeral by stating, Nobody dast blame this man. You

dont understand: Willy was a salesman. And for a salesman, theres no rock bottom to the life.
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Hes a man way out there in the blue riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start

not smiling backthats an earthquake. And then you get yourself a couple spots on your hat and

your finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream boy, it comes with the

territory. (Act 2; 138). This quote from Charley illustrates well why Willy had such unrealistic

expectations. When things werent going very well and the customers werent smiling back like

they used to, Willy had no choice but to try and stay positive and always feel that there were

better days to come. If Willy chose not to think this way, he would essentially be burying himself

alive in negative thoughts. With the job title of a salesman, one must dream unrealistically, and

sometimes Willy took this idea to the extreme. Willy is a clear metaphor of unrealistic

expectations because that idea essentially came with him job title.

Every individual in the world at some time or another has had unrealistic expectations.

Whether it be thinking they will become a millionaire, or simply getting a girls number that is

way out of their league. Unreasonable expectations come in all shapes and sizes. When these

thoughts come around every so often its not necessarily a big deal. However, when these

unattainable thoughts plague someones mind, it can be very hard to escape them. It may even

cause a complete downfall to everything someones ever believed in like it did to Willy Loman in

Death of Salesman. Not only did he ruin his own mind with all of these burdens and

expectations, he also put immense pressure on his son Biff to make something great of himself as

well. That is why, throughout the course of the play Willy was a walking metaphor for the theme

of unrealistic expectations because he consistently felt that himself and Biff could make it big in

the business world for no legitimate reasons other than the simple and shallow fact that they were

both likable and attractive men.

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MLA WORKS CITED

Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. New York: Viking, 1949. Print.