I adjusted your question so that I could address all the
parts: we can only answer one question per posting.
A motif
is like a recurring theme, and we see this continually throughout Miller's play. Willy
Lohman is obsessed with the idea that being attractive and/or well-liked is the secret
to success. This would include the theme of "don't judge a book by its cover," which is
an idea lost on Willy.
In terms of attractiveness, Willy
believes that his son can do anything because of how attractive he is in terms of his
physical appearance and his charismatic personality.
Willy
has also believed for the many years he has been in sales, that being well-liked gets
one through doors that are closed to others. He sees his past as a time when this kind
of relationship with customers not only served to make him successful, but gave him a
better chance of acceptance with his old boss and in making new sales
connections.
We get the sense that his brother Ben was
attractive, well-liked, and particularly successful
financially.
The problem with this belief is that it is
based on appearance only and not on substance. As Willy ages, he is no longer a young
and dynamic salesman; the old "methods" no longer work. He has to perform more calls and
drive farther to make any progress. Being someone's buddy is meaningless in the new
sales arena—at least for him, so things don't come as easily on the job: this means he
is not bringing in the profits he needs to. The "good buddy" deals only work for the
younger salesmen. Consequently, Willy's boss can't "carry" Willy if he can't work
outlying areas, and Willy feels too old to handle being on the road. However, business
is business, and making money is what the company is there to do, so Willy loses his
job.
Willy's son, Biff, is someone Willy expects can do
anything based on how attractive and well-liked he is. This perception only exists
within Willy's mind; in fact, a great deal of how Willy sees the world is based upon
perceptions that are many years old and no longer valid. Willy is out of touch with the
present-day world; this includes the reality of his son's potential for success based on
the old "gimmicks" of favorable appearance and charisma. Whatever Biff may have had
going for him in high school, the truth is that he lost his scholarship, never graduated
high school, and was unable to go to college because he failed senior
math.
Willy does not see these things, and Biff spends a
good deal of the play trying or pretending to try to be what his father wants, but he is
unable to do so based on the reality of his life NOW.
The
major conflicts circle around the attractiveness/well-liked motifs. Willy cannot exist
in the present day world and holds onto things the way they were in the past. Biff
cannot live in the past, and finally has to remind his father of the truth of Biff's
life and limited options for success. Willy does not handle these truths well,
vacillates between the past and present, and ultimately takes his own
life.
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