Happy Flashcards
‘Sexuality is like a visible…
colour on him, or a scent that many women have discovered.’
Act 1 pg.14
A02: Simile shows that Happy has little respect for women.
“Sometimes I just want to rip my…
clothes off in the middle of the store and outbox that goddam merchandise manager”
Act 1 pg.18
AO2: Metaphorically wants to break free from the system.
AO3: Patriarchal attitude. Happy says he can “outbox, outrun, and outlift anybody in that store” - he believes that physical strength is the most important aspect to becoming successful.
“maybe I just have an over-developed…
sense of competition or something, but I went and ruined her… and he’s the third executive I’ve done that to. Isn’t that a crummy characteristic?”
Act 1 pg.18
AO2: “Isn’t that a crummy characteristic?” - rhetorical, inward- looking question. He is aware that what he does is bad but he does it anyway. Verb ‘ruined’ links to when the woman in Boston tells Willy that he’s ‘ruined’ her.
AO3: Hypocritical, patriarchal attitude. The adjective ‘ruined’ shows Happy’s outdated views on women and how he still associates their sexuality with their worth. In late 19th- and early 20th-century America, a new image of womanhood emerged that began to shape public views and understandings of women’s role in society i.e. the 1920 Flappers were young women in the 1920s ‘flapper girls’ who were known for their energetic freedom, embracing a lifestyle. They were the first generation of independent American women, pushing barriers to economic, political and sexual freedom for women. However this New women image was controversial at times.
“I am not licked that easily. I’m staying…
right is this city, and I’m gonna beat this racket!” The Requiem
AO2: Creates cyclical structure ‘beat’ = violent, like Willy. Metaphor - Happy is still trapped in a system he believes he can beat but we know from Willy’s downfall that he will not be able to beat it. Juxtaposes Biff’s ending.
“Willy Lohman did not die in…
vain. He had a good dream.”
Requiem, Happy to Biff
Ironic, as the audience realises Willy is in fact worth more alive than dead, to them. He dies the death of a salesman after all, but it was not what he made it to be. Happy seems to be a continuation of Willy’s falseness.
“No that’s not my…
father. He’s just a guy” Act 2, Happy to Letta
This is when we realise Happy’s fate is sealed, this is the ultimate betrayal. Happy walks away from the problem of Willy in favour of a good time. Happy’s denial of his father is an extreme act of betrayal. giving biblical proportions by echoing Peter’s denial of Jesus. Is this all that bad when Willy has treated him like this his entire life?
Dramatic Irony as Happy is protective and seemingly proud of Willy, this is notable in the requiem, yet at this point he lets sexuality take priority.
“He like his brother, is lost…
more confused and hard-skinned, although seemingly more content.” Act 1, Happy’s initial stage directions
Shows that Happy has made success despite always being in Biff’s shadow, yet he is not happy with the way he is living.
“it’s what I always wanted. My own…
apartment, a car, and plenty of women. And still, goddammit, I’m lonely.” Act 1, Happy to Biff
Shows that the idea of success put forward by Willy and society is achievable for some, but does not bring real contentment. Miller shows the ‘American dream’ is an illusion. Car is symbolic of the American dream.
Happy’s desperation for approval
“I’m losing weight, you notice, Pop?”
Act 1, Happy to Willy (Willy’s memory)
Repeated multiple times in the flashback, shows Happy’s desperation to get his father’s approval when he is so focused on Biff. Reflects his statement of “I’m getting married” in the present.
“I’m gonna get married, Mom.”
end of Act 1, Happy to Linda
Happy is still desperate for affection from his parents, who love Biff. He has to take on Willy’s tactic of lying in order to gain acceptance, and even then it doesn’t work.
“it’s like this girl, see. I hate myself for it. Because…
I don’t want the girl, and, still, I take it and - I love it!”
Act 1, Happy to Biff
Happy’s privilege as a man means that he can get away with sleeping with women in relationships, and it also shows his objectification of women shown through the verb ‘take’. Arguably he is comparable to Biff as it is a kind of theft, and also comparable to Willy because perhaps he does it to feel some kind of power.
“You’re well…
liked, Biff” - Happy
Recurring motif/repeated phrase by Willy
He is making the issue worse, he is embodying and promoting his father’s warped dreams.
“He, like his brother is lost, but in a different way… more confused and hard-skinned, although seemingly more content.”
pg14
Sexist
Happy: “Boy, there was a pig!” (They laugh, almost crudely) pg15
Biff: “I bet you forgot how bashful you used to be. Especially with the girls” pg15
“But take the two girls we had tonight. Weren’t they gorgeous creatures?” pg18
“The only trouble is, it gets like bowling or something. I just keep knockin’ them over and it doesn’t mean anything.” pg18
“I went and ruined her” pg19 - parallel with Willy
“Look at that mouth. Oh, God. And the binoculars” pg79 immediately sexualises Miss Forsyth with eupamistic language - male gaze. To Biff “You want her?” pg81 - objectifying
“when he walks into the store the waves part in front of him… I want to walk into the store the way he walks in.” pg18
The imagery of “waves parting” is a powerful metaphor, suggesting that the merchandise manager’s mere presence commands respect and deference, as if people move aside to make way for him.Biblical allusion reveals that Happy views him as God-like.
Happy’s overall obsession with the merchandise manager, underscores the play’s central theme: the flawed nature of the American Dream and the pursuit of success through popularity and outward appearances rather than genuine achievement.
