Dreams, hopes and plans quotes Flashcards
“Certain men just don’t get started till later in life.”
Willy clings to his hope that Biff will settle down and become a major business success despite the unlikelihood of such an event. This desperate hope is what eventually leads him to commit suicide by the end of the play
” Because Charley is not liked. He’s liked, but he’s not—well liked.”
Willy insists he will make it big some day and have the home life that he wants. Almost more important to him than actual successful business deals is being liked.
“God Almighty, he’ll be great yet. A star like that, magnificent, can never really fade away”
Willy clings to memories of the distant past to find hope for the future. We see and hear of these past events through Willy’s distorted lens. There’s really no telling if anything was ever as wonderful as he paints it.
“His whole attitude seemed to be hopeful” (Biff)
Linda and Willy cling to even the slightest indication of change as definite proof of a better future to come
“before it’s all over we’re gonna get a little place out in the country”
Willy maintains that they will escape their current financial situation and create something new
“I’ll get an advance and I’ll come home with a New York job. Goddammit, now I’m gonna do it! “
Willy experiences occasional moments of extreme optimism that contrast with similarly extreme moments of depression. The back and forth between these highs and lows is what eventually tears him apart
“Why must everybody conquer the world? You’re well liked and the boys love you”
Linda expresses concern that Willy’s massive aspirations are getting the better of him. She seems afraid that if Willy latches on to his brother’s big dreams of success, then she may never see her husband again
“When this game is over, you’ll be laughing out of the other side of your face”
Willy’s hopefulness that the game will turn out well for Biff is based on the belief that Biff has already won the game.This kind of baseless optimism eventually destroys Willy and seems to seriously damage his sons.
” We’ve been talking in a dream for fifteen years. I was a shipping clerk”
Biff points out that because of excessive dreaming and fantasising about a better future, he had lost his grounding in reality. When he forces his father to face this reality, it leads to Willy’s destruction.
“Dad is never so happy as when he’s looking forward to something”
Happy’s statement reflects a fundamental understanding of his father’s need to dream as a means of escape
“Will you take that phony dream and burn it before something happens?”
Biff attributes the tension and distress in his family to the irreconcilable gap between Willy’s absurd dreams and reality.
“He never knew who he was”
Dreaming is so central an aspect of Willy’s character that Happy nearly fights Biff to defend it. Unlike his brother, Happy still wants to believe in Willy.
“It’s the only dream you can have—to come out number one man. “
Hoping to re-elevate his father’s memory, Happy asserts that Willy had the right aspirations, and he will take on his father’s dreams to prove it.
