The All American Scheme
Self fulfillment can be defined as the fulfillment of one’s hope, aspirations and goals through
one’s own effort. There are many ways people go about finding this happiness and sense of
accomplishment. The most important thing one must do when trying to find true happiness is to
remember that you must fight to the end for no one other then yourself. Arthur Miller, playwright of
“Death of a Salesman”, explores this issue with the struggles of three main characters in the play, Willy
Loman, and his two sons, Happy Loman and Biff Loman. Willy strives for the American Dream but never
achieves true happiness because the white collar job was not his passion. Happy feels alone and empty
because in his quest to please his father, he forgets to please himself. As for Biff, he eventually realizes
that self fulfillment comes from doing what you excel at and whatever makes you the happiest. Through
the hardships these characters face, it becomes evident that self fulfillment can only be attained when a
person strives to purely do what is best for them self, regardless of what others make think or feel.
Living to satisfy a dream which is not your own will ultimately lead to unhappiness and
emptiness. Though the course of the play, Willy Loman was pursuing the American dream rather than his
own dream. He tried so hard to make himself happy with his desperate attempts at becoming a successful
salesman but ultimately failed because he lacked passion. With no one to teach him how to achieve true
happiness, Willy was forced to look up to his brother Ben, a multimillion dollar man. Through his
example, Willy came to believe that money and status brought happiness and self fulfillment. His false
values and skewed sense of reality led him to believe that following his true passion, carpentry, was not
an adequate way of life. Willy’s true passion for carpentry and not sales can be evidenced in the quote,
“There’s more Willy in that front stoop than in all the sales he ever made.” After Willy commits suicide,
his family comes to realize that he was happiest when he was building and that was where his real talent
lie. Had Willy not been so caught up in chasing the American Dream and focused more on what made
him happy, he would have had a long, jovial life as a carpenter. His obsession with becoming a top
salesman lead him to become unhappy. His constant search to fulfill himself in all the wrong places,
cheating on his wife, habitual lying and living in his memories ultimately led to his demise. Willy knew
that he wasn’t the smartest person, but he felt that personality and character could get a man farther than
brains ever could. "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." Willy hides the fact that
the sales business is not for him by making up his own rules, when in all actuality, brains is more
important than charisma. He makes excuses and lies to cover his failures and unhappiness. If Willy
would have accepted his strength and talents, he would have been a successful, self fulfilled carpenter.
Abandoning society’s norm, the American dream, and pursuing one’s own idea of success ultimately
leads to contentment.
Me first. These two words lend to an idea that is selfish and self centered, but when it comes to
finding happiness and a strong sense of accomplishment, that phrase could not be more accurate. Happy
Loman, Willy’s younger son, fails to realize this sentiment and adopts his father’s hopes and aspirations
in place of his own, in anticipation that he may finally win his father’s appreciation. Tossing his own
dreams aside, he tries to become the salesman his father failed to be. Happy was constantly trying to gain
the attention and approval of his father. “I’m getting married, Pop, don’t forget it.” He made up this lie, in
a desperate attempt to have his father notice him. In all actuality, Happy was a very lonely man, filling his
emptiness with one night stands. “She’ nothing to me, Biff, I was lonely. I was terribly lonely.” He
couldn’t find true love or any form of a real relationship because he was so disillusioned and unhappy
with himself. Happy spent his whole life trying to be what his father had told him was correct and went
through life following false values that we far from his own. With Happy’s world being so distorted and
filled with lies, it was impossible for him to find true happiness and to be content with his life. He tried so
hard to please his father that he forget to think of himself. “Willy Loman did not die in vain…He had a
good dream, the only dream a man can have – to come out number one man. He fought it out here, and
this is where I’m gonna win it for him.” Even after Willy’s suicide, Happy still vowed to fulfill his
father’s dream and not pursue his own hopes and ambitions. Happy was following down the path the
Willy was leading him which was one full of sorrow and emptiness. With Happy being so caught up in
trying to be Willy’s “perfect son” and forgetting to serve his on purpose, it was impossible for him to find
the fulfillment and happiness he so desperately sought in all the wrong places.
Listening to your heart and following your gut instinct are very important when making
crucial decisions. Biff, Willy’s eldest son, was constantly pushed toward the life his father
wanted for him but he pushed back, knowing deep down that he was meant to do something else.
He dabbled in many careers, trying to make himself happy but never quite found what he was
looking for. “We should be mixing cement on some open plain, or – or carpenters. A carpenter is
allowed to whistle.” He longed to work as a farm hand, out in the country somewhere; quite the
opposite of the white collar job his father had forced upon him. Biff was in a constant quest to
find himself. Breaking out of the lies and false values given to him by his father, he began to
realize that finding true happiness lie far away from the place he was. “Why am I trying to
become something I don't wanna become when all I want is out there waiting for me the minute I
say I know who I am?" Biff realized that once he found his true self in he would be able to
achieve happiness and leave behind his made up life. By the end of the play, Biff had
acknowledged that he must put his own interests first and attempted to shed this light on his
father and Happy. Unfortunately, they did not want to face reality and Biff was forced to follow
his dreams on his own without support from his family behind him. Many people aim to please
others, while others choose to please themselves, those who act on the latter are self fulfilled,
jovial individuals.
Many people believe that if those around you are happy then you also are happy.
However, if you are follow a path which does not in turn satisfy, what is the point? Willy, Happy
and Biff were all on different paths to finding contentment, yet only Biff was on the right track.
Throwing aside the cookie cutter American dream and adhering to your own ambitions leads to
satisfaction in one’s life. Choosing to please other’s above ones self or living to try to reach
someone else’s standards is an unacceptable way to live when trying to find yourself. In the
words of DHT, “Listen to your heart”, and ultimately, once we come to that realization, the
happiness we so desperately seek, will follow.