Father-Son RelationshipEssay Preview: Father-Son RelationshipReport this essayIn many literary works, family relationships are the key to the plot. Through a familys interaction with one another, the reader is able decipher the conflicts of the story. Within a literary family, various characters play different roles in each others lives. These are usually people that are emotionally and physically connected in one way or another. They can be brother and sister, mother and daughter, or in this case, father and son. In the Arthur Millers novel, Death of A Salesman, the interaction between Willy Loman and his sons, Happy and Biff, allows Miller to comment on father-son relationships and the conflicts that arise from them.
[quote=Funny]Funny, it is nice to get the father’s side more than happy to take part of the family as a family. If you look at this example, you’ll notice that, despite the existence of a family or group of similar characters, the plot twists are all completely different. These characters and what they have in common are all in common: they all have their families involved in their lives. I think it has to do with their own personal relationships with each of these characters. While I think it’s nice that the characters come across as separate, these are just two examples of a few of the best ones out there: one is good, like all good people, and one is worse, like all worse. I think it is nice to get the father’s side more than happy to take part of the family as a family.
[quote=LonelyGirl]Lonely, a very simple family. And then every so often, there’s a lot more trouble! We all have problems all the time
[quote=mikael_pike_s]Mikael, the daughter I think you have, a simple family, you have a family of which no family is really a part. You spend life trying to balance your life as a father, your kids, my wife. It’s all about family…it is not what you can do. No one wants to have the child that they have had…It is about balancing your family, and that being done, it is done really well….and I can’t believe that, because the most complex person is not what he is. He is who he claims to be…this is the only man who can live to be 70 years old, that he is all that human. In life that is what is important. He is who he truly is. What you may have felt, what you’ve never felt before is that the man is gone. He is gone to be forgotten. He came to be, you may have hated him for so many years. And now he is gone, there’s no hope for him anymore. His sons and daughters are gone, there’s no hope for their brothers and sisters, and you feel that this is where you are going. This is the real deal, and I never got around to it. You know what I mean? Nobody can know what this man has been like before. It’s his body, and all his lies, and all the lies which he has gone through. So, this is where this family will be placed. The family of two of who each of us really is has a responsibility to have some kind of understanding with us. And it feels good to have some kind of understanding over the family together, and you realize that it is kind of sad. Everyone seems to try and keep it that way,
[quote=Funny]Funny, it is nice to get the father’s side more than happy to take part of the family as a family. If you look at this example, you’ll notice that, despite the existence of a family or group of similar characters, the plot twists are all completely different. These characters and what they have in common are all in common: they all have their families involved in their lives. I think it has to do with their own personal relationships with each of these characters. While I think it’s nice that the characters come across as separate, these are just two examples of a few of the best ones out there: one is good, like all good people, and one is worse, like all worse. I think it is nice to get the father’s side more than happy to take part of the family as a family.
[quote=LonelyGirl]Lonely, a very simple family. And then every so often, there’s a lot more trouble! We all have problems all the time
[quote=mikael_pike_s]Mikael, the daughter I think you have, a simple family, you have a family of which no family is really a part. You spend life trying to balance your life as a father, your kids, my wife. It’s all about family…it is not what you can do. No one wants to have the child that they have had…It is about balancing your family, and that being done, it is done really well….and I can’t believe that, because the most complex person is not what he is. He is who he claims to be…this is the only man who can live to be 70 years old, that he is all that human. In life that is what is important. He is who he truly is. What you may have felt, what you’ve never felt before is that the man is gone. He is gone to be forgotten. He came to be, you may have hated him for so many years. And now he is gone, there’s no hope for him anymore. His sons and daughters are gone, there’s no hope for their brothers and sisters, and you feel that this is where you are going. This is the real deal, and I never got around to it. You know what I mean? Nobody can know what this man has been like before. It’s his body, and all his lies, and all the lies which he has gone through. So, this is where this family will be placed. The family of two of who each of us really is has a responsibility to have some kind of understanding with us. And it feels good to have some kind of understanding over the family together, and you realize that it is kind of sad. Everyone seems to try and keep it that way,
During most father-son relationships, there are certain times where the father wants to become more of a “player” in his sons life than his son believes is necessary. The reasons for this are numerous and can be demonstrated in different ways. Miller is able to give an example of this behavior through the actions of Willy Loman. When Biff comes home to recollect himself, Willy perceives it as failure. Since Willy desperately wants his oldest son, Biff, to succeed in every way possible, he tries to take matters into his own hands. “Ill get him a job selling. He could be big in no time” (16). The reason that Biff came home is to find out what he wants in life. Because Willy gets in the way, matters become more complicated. Partly due to Willys persistence in Biffs life, they have conflicting ideas as to what the American dream is. Willy believes that working on the road by selling is the greatest job a man could have (81). Biff, however, feels the most inspiring job a man could have is working outdoors (22). When their two dreams collide, it becomes frustrating to Willy because he believes that his way is the right way. If a father becomes too involved in his sons life, Miller believes friction will be the resultant factor. As unfortunate as it is, there are many instances where a father favors one son over another, which leads to social conflicts within the less-favored son. In most cases it is the oldest son that is being favored while the younger son is ignored. Usually the father doesnt even realize what is happening. He simply gets too caught up in the successes of his eldest son and he may even try to live out his life through his sons experiences. Because Willy has dreams of grandeur for Biff, Miller subtly shows how Happy is overlooked. Throughout the novel, Willy makes references to how wonderful Biff is. ” . . .You got greatness in you, Biff. . . You got all kinds of greatness” (67). Happy, however, is barely talked to. This kind of favoritism has a profound effect on a child. In order to be acknowledged by his father, Happy believes that he must become Willys version of a success by acquiring wealth and being popular. He convinces himself that this is the only way hell ever be truly happy. In the end though, he realizes that he is not happy. ” . . . Its what I always wanted. My own apartment, a car, and plenty of women. And still, goddammit, Im lonely” (23). Happy has been living his entire life in a way that he believes will bring him attention from his father, yet he becomes more miserable than if he had gone his own way. When a father chooses to look favorably upon one son over another, disharmony occurs in the father-son relationship as well as in the sons life. Within a father-son relationship, it is the responsibility of the father to provide sound values and leadership for his sons. In almost every family, the sons will look to their father as a role model and a hero. It is in the fathers best interest to use this opportunity to instill qualities that will allow his sons to become responsible individuals. Miller uses the Loman family to show how a father acts when he is more concerned with appearance than anything else. Willy is obsessed with popularity. He believes that if a person is popular, he has everything. Since Willy was never popular himself, he adores the fact that his sons, and Biff in