Willy Loman is 60 years old and has not seen the fulfillment of any of the dreams he's had for himself and his family. Instead, he lives in a small apartment with his wife and sons who watch Willy’s work go unrewarded. The story of Willy Loman illustrates what happens when the American dream dies and how denial on the part of the dreamer leads to internal and external suffering.
Because Willy has not fulfilled his dreams, he takes out his frustration on his family. By virtue of her proximity, his wife Linda sees effects firsthand. Although she loves him, she has to deal with his outbursts. She sees his actions "as sharp reminders of the turbulent longings within him, longings which she shares but lacks the temperament to utter and follow to their end" (12). Instead of telling him that his dreams will never be fulfilled, she feeds his delusions of greatness.
Willy's see his own lack of fulfillment in his two sons. Happy and Biff are in their early 30s and neither of them seem to have their lives together. Willy sees himself in his boys, the death of the American Dream by the way they are living.
Happy drowns himself in the company of women; Biff traipses across the country from one job to another. Biff says of himself, "I've always made a point of not wasting my life, and everytime I come back here I know that all I've done is to waste my life" (23) He sees himself as a failure and headed down the same road as his father.
However, Willy remains in denial, even thought this is hurting himself and his family. Willy thinks about missed opportunities he has had in his life. He could have moved to places where he would have made more money. Yet, he stays where he is and makes excuses or blames others for his failure and denies his part in his unfulfilled American Dream.
Because he is sick of the wasted life, Willy is constantly trying to kill himself. Yet, his family denies that he is trying to commit suicide for a long time. They finally start adding the attempted accidents up and realize that is actions are part of the anguish of not achieving his dreams.
While he is attempting to kill himself, Willy still puts up a façade for his family and friends. At home, he presents himself as a prominent salesman in cities where he has traveled. He says, "Call out the name Willy Loman and see what happens! Big shot!" (62). Nevertheless, he denies the fact that after all those years in the business, he has not progressed and everyone looks at him as if he is a joke.
When people live in denial and doesn't realize their role in the loss of a dream, it usually leads to their undoing. "Death of a Salesman" is the antithesis of the happy ending, the fulfillment of that American Dream. Willy illustrates the dark side of that dream. Although death may not be the final outcome of denial, the alienation he feels from people in his life demonstrates the dire consequences.
