“Death of a Salesman” Play

In the play "Death of a Salesman," Biff is portrayed as a tough guy. Biff is depicted as a dumb lump and as large as his name suggests in much of the play. Nonetheless, an examination of the game reveals that he is the main character in the play. For starters, he is the only character in the play who seems to be undergoing healthy personal development. Biff, like every other human being or character in the play, has strengths and disadvantages. For example, he often steals from his bosses, was imprisoned, and is unable to work at a single station for a prolonged period of time (Bloom, Harold, ed, 2007). Despite Biff’s shortcomings, he is presented as a character that is loved by many readers of the ‘Death of a Salesman’ because of the role he plays. One of the positive impacts that Biff has in the play is that he has personal development record in all aspects of life.

His father, Willy, is always crazy about what Biff does because he is the oldest son. For example, his father expected him to perform well academically because he was a football star. Nevertheless, Biff was not interested in curricular activities, and that made his father mad. The history of Biff’s background is important in the play because it shows the expectation of his parents as well as strengths and weaknesses in various fields (Jacobus, Lee, 2008). Also, we get to understand that Willy was not strict on Biff and that contributed to his bad behaviors. Consequently, Biff was forced to work harder to graduate and get a football scholarship. Biff had another chance of securing of securing his scholarship after he flunked in math. The second option was to take a summer course while other students were in a holiday to improve his mathematics grades.

However, that did not happen because at the time he decided to share with his father he found out that the latter has been cheating on his mother. The effects of the father’s behavior in the life of their son are also manifested in this case. He (Biff) was crazy about his father and failed to share his intentions of going back to school during the summer (Jacobus, Lee, 2008). As a result, we get to understand why Biff was important in determining the course of the play. Willy is also stressed since his children are not as fortunate as he thought they would be in future. The many parenting mistakes Willy makes stress him to the point of having hallucinations. Thus, we get to understand what has affected the physical and mental health of Willy by looking at him through the eyes of his son, Biff. Most of the revelations about the secret life of salesman are discussed via Biff.

At the age of 34, Biff had given up on his football career and started working in a West ranch. He blames his father, Willy for the misfortunes that befell him and dropped out of school. The tragedy he faces in life convinces him that trust is a crucial component of man’s life. Biff would not like his life to end like the salesman who is about to die. The story teaches us that the American Dream is for a few people. Some people are busy looking for money to enrich them while other wants to live a basic life. Thus, through the story of Biff readers understand the history of various characters.

Work Cited

Bloom, Harold, ed. Arthur Miller's Death of a salesman. Chelsea House Pub, 2007.

Jacobus, Lee A. The Bedford introduction to drama. Bedford Books of St. Martin's Press, 2008.