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Death Of A Salesman > Act 1 > Flashcards

Act 1 Flashcards

(60 cards)

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1
Q

What is the first thing heard in death of a salesman

A

“A melody is heard,played upon a flute”

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2
Q

Significance of “a melody is heard,played upon a flute

A

Willy’s father was a flute maker
Flute remains a motif throughout text and represents nostalgia for Willy

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3
Q

How is the home of Willy Loman described

A

A solid vault of a apartment houses around the small,fragile seeming home

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4
Q

Significance of the house being in a “vault of apartment houses”

A

Shows how modernity entraps Willy and surrounds him
His own “Visible” house suggests his own entrapment in his life and mental space
He’s trapped within an unworkable system where retail and competition dominates

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5
Q

What are the two types of light shown in the beginning of DOAS

A

Orange light and blue light

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6
Q

What is the significance of the blue light at the start of the play

A

-Blue light is often associated with creaminess,nostalgia and illusion
-Reflectant of Willy Loman’s mindset
-Isolates the Loman house from the harsh reality outside reflecting Willy’s false hope/fantasy

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7
Q

What is the significance of the orange light at the beginning of the play

A

-Described as an “angry glow” it symbolises the pressure,danger and the oppressive modern industrial world
-Represents the encroaching modern city
-The “angry” nature suggests conflict-both external (vs society) and his own growing mental instability

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8
Q

What’s the overall effect of the blue and orange light at the beginning of the play

A

-Colour contrasts set up the plays main conflict:Willy’s comforting but false dreams being under siege by the brutal competitive capitalist world
-Lighting also helps create a claustrophobic atmosphere emphasising how trapped Willy feels

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9
Q

Significance of setting being wholly,or in some places partially transparent

A

-Allows us to stick to movement through time
-Interior and exterior merged emphasises blending of Willy’s external and internal worlds

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10
Q

Significance of willy’s first words being “oh boy,oh boy”

A

-Talks to himself appearing out of touch with reality and indicating his confused mental state
-Shows the burden of his life

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11
Q

What is the significance of the start of the play where Willy tells Linda of his problems on the road

A

1.Immediate sign of Willy’s decline-First explicit sign that Willy is mentally and physically breaking down as his inability to drive (a key part of his identity as a salesman) shows his loss of control over his life and career
2.Foreshadowing of later suicidal car crash
3.Theme of illusion vs reality-Linda and Willy live in denial with Linda saying “maybe it’s your glasses” they have a pattern of attempting to escape reality
4.Introduction of pity and sympathy for Willy as a vunerable confused and struggling salesman

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12
Q

Quote showing Willy’s unrealistic view of his own achievements

A

“When I went north the first time,the Wagner company didn’t know where New England was!”

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13
Q

Significance of “when I went north…the Wagner company didn’t know where New England was!”

A

Unrealistic view of achievements,He appears more comfortable in his own world of self deception than in confronting his present failures

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14
Q

What quote shows Willy’s equating of success to material wealth (a critique of the shallow aspects of the American dream)

A

“I simply asked him if he was making any money”

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15
Q

Quote showing Willy’s own fickle nature and contradictions

A

“Biff is a lazy bum”…”one thing about biff-he’s not lazy”

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16
Q

Significance of Willy’s contradictions

A

-Mirrors Willy’s deep inner conflict between his idealised dreams and the painful truth of reality
-Inability to stick to one belief shows the inconsistency of the American dream (the dream he chases)
-Creates dramatic irony
-Highlights his mental and emotional detirioation eventually culminating in his final contradiction of believing the suicide will bring his family fortune and redemption when it actually cements his tragic failure

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17
Q

Quote showing Willy’s own entrapment in home and mind

A

“The way they boxed us in here.brick and windows,windows and bricks”

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18
Q

Quote showing Willy’s own childishness and inconsistencies

A

“Population is getting out of control…how can they whip cheese?”

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19
Q

Quote showing Willy’s love for Linda

A

“Your my foundation and my support Linda”

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20
Q

Analysis of “your my foundation and my support Linda”

A

-“Foundation and “support” are structural metaphors presenting Linda as holding Willy up emotionally and psychologically
-Reveals Willy dependence-Shows how emotionally dependent Willy is in Kinda despite him often dismissing her,reversal of gender roles?
-Linda’s loyalty though well-meaning enables Willy’s self delusion rather than confronting the truth

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21
Q

Quote showing Willy being unable to seperate present and past

A

“I was thinking of the Chevvy”

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22
Q

Significance of “I was thinking of the chevvy”

A

-Shows his inability to seperate present from past
-His immersion in memory and illusion provides a great source of happiness yet also forms the symptoms of his mental illness

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23
Q

What is biff’s inclination for work

A

Biff’s inclination is for outdoor physical activities
Believes he can’t achieve happiness in business world yet still feels pressured to create a large salary for himself

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24
Q

What are Biff and Happy first presented as

A

Incredibly chauvinistic in their talk of women

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25
How is Biff presented and what quotes show this
He’s shown to be lost as Happy asks him “where’s the old humour,the old confidence”
26
How is Happy too presented as lost
Despite his life being more like the one Willy wants his sons to lead he still says “I don’t know what the hell im workin for” and that he’s “still lonely” despite achieving all he wanted
27
How does happy contradict himself like his father
He switches from excitement over the prospect of a ranch to asking “what can you make out there” This monetary worry is ultimately what restricts them from achieving the life they truly desire showing how the American dream prevents many from achieving true happiness as they are left chasing money all their life
28
What does happy reveal he did with a married woman in the beginning of the story
He had sexual relations
29
How does happy feel about having a relationship with a married woman
He appears disgusted saying he “went and ruined her”
30
What is the significance of “I went and ruined her” from Happy
-Presents Happy as a conflicted character who is disgusted with himself yet unwilling to change -Positive aspect of his character is overwhelmed by his sexual arrogance and empty optimism -Characterises Happy as a hollow reflection of Willy as he is fixated on being “well liked” but channels it into meaningless seduction rather than real connection/success -Undermines the traditional values of marriage,values that Willy claims to uphold exposing the hypocrisy within the Loman family
31
How do the sons react differently to their fathers eccentric murmers and why is this significant
Happy just tells biff to go to sleep Biff calls him “selfish” and “stupid” Division of Biff and Happy colours and causes their present day relationship
32
How does Willy’s identity as a father define him
Frequent flashbacks show Willy is happiest as a father with control over his sons The sons are also a source of masculine pride for him
33
Quote showing a young Biff idealising his father
“How’s that pop,professional”
34
Why is the stealing of the footballs in the first flashback key
Sows the seeds of Biff’s later failures as Willy seemingly approves Reflects idea of American Dream that success is to be taken when opportunity given
35
Quote showing Biff contrasting his sons to Bernard
“Bernard is not well liked is he”
36
Significance of lying about money earnt “five hundred gross in providence” “hundred and eighty gross in providence”
Underlines how unstable his sense of reality is and shows his dogged clinging to American dream even in face of failure Fails to recognise reality due to own ego
37
Significance of contradiction even in dream world “I’m very well liked in Harvard…people don’t seem to take to me
Dreams are idealised reconstructions of scenes from his life,despite this Willy himself is unsure to the extent of which he’s liked and these contradictions only grow throughout
38
What is the significance of The Woman
Name or ‘The Woman’ Suggests her mystery,when she is first seen she appears ‘dimly seen’ showing her belonging to a dark realm of Willy’s own mind -Woman is sensual creature,an almost idealised version of a seductress and so a name isn’t needed -She contrasts Linda as her sensual presence juxtaposes the domestic atmosphere of the Loman household
39
How does the first encounter with ‘The Woman’ go in flashbacks
It’s a positive experience,she validates Willy ‘s dream of being desirable and ‘well liked’
40
What is the significance of Linda mending stockings after the woman scene and how Willy reacts
This is a sign of Willy’s own guilt,underlining the contrast between the confident successful man he pretends to be with ‘The Woman’ and the vulnerable unstable realities of his life with Linda Willy reacts angrily taking them reflecting his failure to admit the truth and allowance of his own guilt in order to protect his ambitions
41
Quote showing Willy seemingly incapable of finding a solution to his sons problems
“If he doesn’t study” “You’ll give him the answers” “He’s too rough with the girls” “I’ll whip him” “He’s driving the car without a license” “shut up” “shut up”
42
Quote communicating his impending sense of disaster and death of American dream also links to his love of nature
“The woods are burning”
43
Quote showing Willy’s tragic flaw of his pride when offered a job by Charley
“What the hell are you offering me a job for?”
44
How does Ben appear different from other characters
He’s described as “utterly certain of his destiny”
45
Quote showing Ben as strangely detached and that none of the money he made actually benefitted the family
“That’s too bad.fine specimen of a lady, Mother” he appears strangely detached perhaps due to his appearance only being in psychic time
46
Quote showing motif of card game as American dream and significance
“If you don’t know how to play the game I’m not gonna throw my money away on you!” Willy recognises competition in American society and yet is unable to compete having no luck due to him taking no risks and failing to be ruthless
47
Significant quote by Ben on American dream
“When I was seventeen I walked into the jungle and when I was twenty one I walked out…and by God I was rich”
48
Quote showing the necessary evil within society
“Never fight fair with a stranger boy”
49
Significance of Willy seeking Ben’s approval “no ben please tell about dad” “we hunt too”
Willy’s own self doubt and feeling of inadequacy in comparison to Ben who appears to seem an embodiment of the ideals and aspirations of life lead to this pleading
50
What does Willy’s increasing patheticness in begging Ben to stay culminate in
An admittance of his own inadequacy as a father “Ben how should I teach them?”
51
Quote showing Linda as determinedly loyal to Willy and seen as his protector
“He’s the dearest man in the world to me”
52
Quote from Linda exemplifying the tragedy of the common man and the sense of importance in human existence
“But he’s a human being and a terrible thing is happening to him”
53
Quote showing a barrage of rhetorical questions from Linda and her understanding of this harsh society and Willy’s condition
“Why shoulden’t he talk to himself? Why? When he has to go to Charley and borrow fifty dollars a week and pretend to me that it’s his pay”
54
Quote showing Euphimism of revelation of Willy’s attempted suicides
“He’s dying,Biff”
55
Quote showing tragedy of common man and how Willy’s struggle deserves just as much attention as a king’s etc
“I tell you there’s more good in him than in many other people”
56
What is the significance of the rubber pipe
Physical symbol of Willy’s despair Use of domestic realism to make tragedy feel personal and relatable as a symbol of domestic comfort becomes twisted into suicide tool
57
How do Happy and Biff’s responses contrast each other after the revelation of Willy’s suicide attempts
Biff is selfless and decides to stay and work Happy is insensitive and remarks that Biff “never tried to please people”
58
Quote showing Willy’s belief in outdated codes of masculinity and his own insecurity in not achieving the dream
“I never in my life whistled in an elevator”
59
Significance of Happy’s idea of two basketball teams
Shows his capability of immense and misplaced optimism,mirroring Willy
60
Significance of the end of act 1
Three components make for ominous atmosphere at end of act -Biff finding the rubber tubing -Linda’s desperate but monotonous humming -Willy’s boyish delight regarding the moon

Death Of A Salesman (3 decks)

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