Maile Danilchik
4/29/17
IB Language and Literature
“Without a penny to his name, three great universities are begging for him, and from there the sky’s the limit, because it’s not what you do, Ben. It’s who you know and the smile on your face! It’s contacts, Ben, contacts! The whole wealth of Alaska passes over the lunch table at the Commodore Hotel, and that’s the wonder, the wonder of this country, that a man can end with diamonds here on the basis of being liked!” (Miller, 86).
This quote from Death of A Salesman shows how Willy Loman perceives the American Dream to be. He emphasizes the “rags to riches” idea of how the dream operates. Many people believe that the American Dream is founded on an opportunity for education and quality of life that allows one to be successful and rich in business. Willy talks about his son, Biff, being sought out by “three great universities”, incorporating the idea of education be a launching point for success. However, many people think that you must do something worthy of fulfilling the American Dream, for instance, many immigrants believe that you must work hard in order to be successful in this society. Others think you must be intelligent. Willy, on the other hand, tells Ben that someone needs connections to others and charism in order to be successful in America. Despite the possibility of his son going to a good university, Willy stresses how important “the smile on your face” is to get the opportunities. He also highlights that contacts are important, which we see later when he tries to work with Howard Wagner to obtain more money and he uses his connection to Howard’s father as a claim of worthiness. According to Willy, charisma and personality will lead a man do “end with diamonds on the basis of being liked”, meaning that because someone is likable they will forage more relationships in business, resulting in more connections for the future.
Word Count (excluding quote): 242
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