As we all know, Willy is all about making money. Because of his views on success, he finds manual labor jobs to be beneath him. They are not high-paying jobs or ones for means of success in his mind. Coincidentally, manual labor jobs seem to be what he enjoys (example, gardening). He sells himself short (no pun intended) by looking down on what could make him happy and some-what successful.
I agree 100%. Willy knows that he can do many things with his hands, but he chooses not to. You definitely hit the nail right on the head with saying that he believed that blue collar jobs were beneath him because Willy wanted to use business to be as successful as possible and he also wanted his sons to take part in a business career to bring themselves success.
I agree that Willy sells himself short. He could have been something great but he refused to because of how he thought of himself. As you said, he wanted to make money and these jobs could have done that for him, but he never would have known because his pride held him back.
Willy was a very prideful man. He was always too proud to take a job from Charley, but still accepted money to pay for insurance. The image of Willy working with his hands shows here because he is still driving and working his tail off, but not making as much money as he might with a job from Charley. The important factor is that Willy hopes Linda does not know he accepts money from Charley because it would kill his pride to have his wife know he cannot support the three of them living in his house. Willy could no longer support his family, so in the end he took his own life rather than seek another solution.
I agree with your comment. Willy was a man who was full of pride. It was one of his major flaws that lead to his downfall. Working for Charley could have done so much for Willy.
I also agree with your comment. Willy probably could have earned a better living with Charlie's job, but his pride got in is way. Willy was not really taking his life because he could not support his family though. He did it to try and help his family in the only way he thought he could. He thought the insurance money would allow his family to keep afloat.
I think that a darker image of Willy using his hands exists in the play. His hands are his greatest gift, but also a curse. I think that his modification to the gas pipe is an example of the ability Willy had for manual types of labor. His inventiveness to have a "nipple" that would keep his family from also suffering was a major example of his ability to create. His hands were capable of making anything he wanted to. His mind, on the other hand, determined whether his hands would be used for good or bad.
I agree with you. Willy's hands are fully capable of doing anything he wants them to do. All of his work is through his hands, including his death. His hands could both build things, such as the ceiling, or destroy. I agree that his hands solely do what his mind wants them to do and do not act on their own. I think that Willy had absolute control over what his hands did, but not necessarily over anything else in his life.
Willy truly enjoys working with his hands and looking at what he has created or renovated. Willy also knows that that type of labor does not bring in a big paycheck. Again, going back to his greed. He looks down on people with actual labor jobs because of what they make even though they’re probably a lot happier than Willy will ever be. He loves that sense of satisfaction after completing a project but his sense of pride is needier and will always get the better of him.
As we all know, Willy is all about making money. Because of his views on success, he finds manual labor jobs to be beneath him. They are not high-paying jobs or ones for means of success in his mind. Coincidentally, manual labor jobs seem to be what he enjoys (example, gardening). He sells himself short (no pun intended) by looking down on what could make him happy and some-what successful.
ReplyDeleteI agree 100%. Willy knows that he can do many things with his hands, but he chooses not to. You definitely hit the nail right on the head with saying that he believed that blue collar jobs were beneath him because Willy wanted to use business to be as successful as possible and he also wanted his sons to take part in a business career to bring themselves success.
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DeleteI agree that Willy sells himself short. He could have been something great but he refused to because of how he thought of himself. As you said, he wanted to make money and these jobs could have done that for him, but he never would have known because his pride held him back.
DeleteWilly was a very prideful man. He was always too proud to take a job from Charley, but still accepted money to pay for insurance. The image of Willy working with his hands shows here because he is still driving and working his tail off, but not making as much money as he might with a job from Charley. The important factor is that Willy hopes Linda does not know he accepts money from Charley because it would kill his pride to have his wife know he cannot support the three of them living in his house. Willy could no longer support his family, so in the end he took his own life rather than seek another solution.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comment. Willy was a man who was full of pride. It was one of his major flaws that lead to his downfall. Working for Charley could have done so much for Willy.
DeleteI also agree with your comment. Willy probably could have earned a better living with Charlie's job, but his pride got in is way. Willy was not really taking his life because he could not support his family though. He did it to try and help his family in the only way he thought he could. He thought the insurance money would allow his family to keep afloat.
DeleteI agree with your reasoning of Willy's suicide. There was no way he could have dealt with disappointing his family.
DeleteI think that a darker image of Willy using his hands exists in the play. His hands are his greatest gift, but also a curse. I think that his modification to the gas pipe is an example of the ability Willy had for manual types of labor. His inventiveness to have a "nipple" that would keep his family from also suffering was a major example of his ability to create. His hands were capable of making anything he wanted to. His mind, on the other hand, determined whether his hands would be used for good or bad.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you. Willy's hands are fully capable of doing anything he wants them to do. All of his work is through his hands, including his death. His hands could both build things, such as the ceiling, or destroy. I agree that his hands solely do what his mind wants them to do and do not act on their own. I think that Willy had absolute control over what his hands did, but not necessarily over anything else in his life.
DeleteWilly truly enjoys working with his hands and looking at what he has created or renovated. Willy also knows that that type of labor does not bring in a big paycheck. Again, going back to his greed. He looks down on people with actual labor jobs because of what they make even though they’re probably a lot happier than Willy will ever be. He loves that sense of satisfaction after completing a project but his sense of pride is needier and will always get the better of him.
ReplyDelete