Learning Team 2: Willy's sanity, LIT class dissuasion question help

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Sngfurrc

Humanities

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This assignment you gonna write a response to the topic given by professor below 250 words maximum , i will post some of the student's post below for you as a sample, please write base on the topic itself, do not use any summary from website. Also you need response to these two student post in 100-150 words for each response.

Learning Team 2: Willy's sanity

Where did you start to get some clues that Willy might not be in his right mind? What is some evidence of that in the play? Did Willy ever live in reality?


Student's post

Corinne Mangold

RE: Learning Team 2: Willy's sanity

Watching the movie and reading the play "Death of a Salesman", I felt the movie gave me a better and quicker understanding that Willy was not in his right mind. This impression began in the first five minutes of the movie, as Mr. Loman was driving his car home in a confused manner. Where as in the play, there were clues shortly after his arrival at home, beginning with Linda's worried nature of her husband. It was obvious to me that Linda was quite relieved when Willy arrived back at home. I feel this offered the viewer/reader the idea that his days of traveling to and from work had become worrisome and unstable. Although, I mentioned I picked up on Mr. Loman's impairment in the movie faster, I will say, both versions were quick to recognize his issues. I clearly realized Willy's thoughts were very erratic while in his bedroom talking with Linda. As the play moved forward, his demeanor continued to change rapidly and of course, his delusional conversations with himself and the hallucinations he endured proved to be a breakdown of Willy's mental status, more or less due to his own arrogant, false perceptions of life.

At first, I thought Mr. Loman was suffering from dementia, but as I read on and watched more of the movie, I felt strongly that Willy's entire life seemed to be built upon deception and not once did I feel like he was living in reality. I believe his life was a lie, he lied to himself, to his family and to the few people around him. However, I don't think this was done to be malicious, I think he was so wrapped up in these lies it became "his reality" and most importantly used this ailment to escape his own flaws, "real reality"and failure as a salesman, husband and father.

Interestingly, regardless of his twisted views, unstable behavior, poor choices, unfriendliness and overwhelming deception, I never felt angry with Willy, I had a continuous sense of sorrow for him as I never had the impression that his words, actions and delusions were intentionally meant to hurt the people around him, I believe he subconsciously lost control of his own mind.

I would also like to say that although I said I didn't feel Mr. Loman was living within reality, my opinion was strictly based upon the questions asked and not the entire play/movie. I do think reality finally set in for Willy and that was the ultimate cause of the tragic ending.

Note: "Death of a Salesman" was not what I expected at all, I truly enjoyed reading and viewing this play.


5 hours ago

Tabitha Walker

RE: Learning Team 2: Willy's sanity

Having only read one play in high school, I decided that instead of watching the play first, I would read it. Right away, I caught on to the fact the Willy was not in his right mind. When Willy says, "I have thoughts, I have such strange thoughts" and "I don't remember the last five minutes. I'm- I can't seem to- keep my mind to it" I started to think that he has some kind of depression or mental health disorder going on (page 1002). As the play continued on, I realized that Willy began to switch his mood from "normal" to upset when he starts talking about his son and also when he talks about the wrong cheese that his wife bought. Also, it was very strange to me when Willy said "Why don't you open a window in here, for God's sake?" to his wife, but the windows were already open (page 1004). In the book it was hard to tell the changing tones of voice, but in the movie, it was very apparent. For example, Willy is talking normally to his wife when he says, "Figure it out. Work a lifetime to pay off a house. You finally own it, and there's nobody to live in it," then a few lines down he snaps at her by saying, "Not finding yourself at the age of thirty-four is a disgrace!" (page1003). He then starts having flashbacks and talking to himself, and this is where I started thinking that he had Alzheimer's or some form of dementia because typically people that suffer from those diseases usually retreat back to their younger years.

I do think that at some point Willy did actually live in reality. I think that when he started becoming an unsuccessful salesman is when he started "losing it". He was so preoccupied with teaching his sons to be successful that he let himself become unsuccessful. I feel as though in order for Willy to have returned back to reality, he would have had to come to terms with himself that he was not perfect and that sometimes things like, totally providing for your family, and bringing up your children to be successful is sometimes totally out of your control. I think that Willy became so preoccupied with trying to and desiring to live the "American Dream", that he forgot how to live any other way. In other words, I think that he ultimately died from thinking he "failed" at achieving the American Dream.

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Explanation & Answer

Attached.

Right from the start of the movie and the play, I noticed that Willy was having some memory loss
problems. When Willy returns home from his sales trip, Linda is worried that he come early and upon
inquiring why, he admits the he almost lost control of the car as he was not concentrating. As such, he
was lost in his dreams to drive. I feel that this brings up Willy’s unstable state of mind and creates a
perception that he might be suffering from dementia. At the same time, While Willy was criticizing Biff
to Linda, he c...


Anonymous
Really helpful material, saved me a great deal of time.

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