In the play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, Biff and Willy Loman both struggle to maintain their dignity, but in different ways. In the scene where Biff finally realizes he's worth ten cents, Willy refuses to believe what Biff says and adds that he's "not a dime!" I'm Willy Loman and you're Biff Loman! » because if he admitted that he is no different from others, he would admit that his whole life is false. And Biff, who is a dime a dozen, doesn't know where his place is in life, we see it when he says "Pop, I'm nothing!" I am nothing.” While on the one hand, Willy struggles to preserve his dignity because he struggles to maintain the illusion of his life, on the other hand, Biff struggles to preserve his dignity because he has not yet found his place in life. life and he struggles to accept that he is not someone his father wants him to be. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Part of Willy Loman's dignity lies in his illusion of his success, it is shown at the beginning of the play when Willy says, "I" I am the New England man. I'm vital to New England. and Willy lives believing that he is vital to the company. When Willy asks Howard to let him work in New York, he cites the fact that "in 1928" he "had a great year." and “on average one hundred and seventy dollars per week in commissions.” This idea of ​​his success is an illusion and Howard confirmed that Willy "never averaged" the amounts he claims to have made. Willy's delusion that he was vital to the company completely collapsed when Howard fired him, saying, "I don't want you to represent us." Another part of Willy's dignity is his pride as a father and the fact that he did everything he could to make his sons successful. Willy's recipe for success is based entirely on a cult of personality. According to Willy, only great men are truly appreciated and this is what brings them success. Willy's beliefs and behavior have been transferred to those of his son, this can be seen in the scene where Biff talks about Bernard, saying that Bernard is "loved, but he's not well-liked". Willy tries to protect the illusion that he is a good father when he talks to Bernard about what happened to Biff during his visit to Willy in Boston. Bernard asked Willy, “Did you tell him not to go to summer school?” to which Willy replied that he “begged him to go” and even “ordered him to go!” ". Willy tries to make it seem like it's not his fault and Biff is completely at fault himself when in reality Willy had everything to do with it. Bernard asked Willy what happened to BifF when he "disappeared from the neighborhood for almost a month" and then asked another question "What happened in Boston, Willy?" and this leading question collapses Willy's illusion. Because Willy knows that Biff failed math after visiting Boston because he finally saw who Willy really is, a “fake!” a “fake little fake!” ". Biff realized this when he found out Willy was cheating on Linda with a woman, trying to defend himself. Willy said, "She's nothing to me, Biff, I was alone, I was terribly alone." and all his words didn't make him any less guilty of his action, Biff was emotionally devastated after seeing that his father was not someone he thought he was. This is why Biff failed in mathematics and we can say that Willy is responsible for it. Unlike Willy, Biff's dignity is tied to his sense of place in life. When Biff and Happy are talking about what the future would be, Biff tells Happy, "I don't know what the future is."”.