Death of a Salesman, Act 2-Requiem Guided Reading Questions* Ms.

Laurin
*Adapted from Donald Roberts’s A Teacher’s Guide to Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
(Penguin). Directions: Use these questions to guide your reading of Arthur Miller’s (1949) play
Death of a Salesman. You may type your answers directly into this document in any form you’d
like (e.g. paragraph of ideas, list of ideas, list of textual evidence, etc.). Act 2

1. What kind of mood does the music immediately suggest? Why does the scene open with this mood?
- The music is vivid emphasising the coming of bright future of Willy and his sons.
2. Willy says that he would like to buy some seeds after work this evening. What does the gardening
motif (n. – idea repeated throughout the text) suggest about Willy’s attitude?
- Seeds symbolise his failure of parenting. While he’s planting seeds he always talking about
his sons and their future. Willy, at the moment, tried to do somethings that can actually grow
by his hands.
3. Linda and Willy are about to make their last mortgage payment on the house. Linda points out that
the house has “served its purpose.” What does she mean? Why doesn’t Willy understand her
meaning?
- Linda try to claim down Willy while he was upset about 25 years mortgage and there are still
crack in the house. Linda point out that the house do its job perfectly, to provide shelter for
Loman family. Biff argued that others will move in without acknowledging his effort he puts
in this house. So he’ll leave it for Biff when he has his own family.
4. Over the phone, Biff tells Linda that he was the one who took the rubber pipe off of the gas heater.
What is Linda’s reaction? Why would she have felt more relieved if Willy had removed it himself?
- She felt more relax because it symbolise that Willy have no longer attempt suicide and
seeking for the bright future. In fact, it wasn’t Willy but Biff.
5. How would you describe Howard? What do he and Willy have in common? What is Howard’s
reaction to Willy as he describes his wishes? Why does he react this way?
- Howard is a dismissive man who didn’t care about his employee welfare. As a matter of the
fact, they both alike in the the way that they likely to be dominated in conversation. Howard
takes control of the argument because of his career’s position, in the same case with Willy but
the family role instead. Howard’s reaction toward the Willy’s request is ignorant as he think
Willy is not capable of doing his job well anymore and Willy have well financial supports
from his two sons as he kept bragging his sons’ success all along.
6. Compared to his words, how do Howard’s actions tell us more about his attitude toward Willy?
- Willy’s hard work throughout the year is unrecognisable by Howard, instead he focuses at the
moment of the conversation. Willy’s expression and desire determine weakness of Willy. He
realised that Willy is a drag and embarrassment so he terminated Willy out of his company.
Indeed, He is more interested with tape-record than his employees implies similarity between
Willy and Howard, they both are materialistic.
7. While Ben is building his business empire, Willy is building “something with [his] firm.”
According to Willy, what is he building? How is it different from what Ben is building?
- Willy describes Ben as brave but found his fortune from luck. However, he didn’t realise that
what Ben receives is from hard working and patience. Willy once mentioned about
Singleman’s legend, a man with dignity and respect. He chose this path instead of Ben’s
because he wants to be rich and famous through hard work, the ideal of American Dream.
8. “Ben, am I right? Don’t you think I’m right? I value your advice.” Why do you think Willy needs
Ben’s validation (n. – encouragement that the person has value)? Is there evidence that Ben has ever
validated Willy’s life choices? How has this affected how Willy thinks about himself, his life, and his
past choices?
- Willy admires and idolises Ben as the example of success because he prove that American
Dream can be real. Most of the time throughout the play, Ben’s advices came out as an
imagination of his unconsciousness which often went wrong. Willy values Ben’s
accomplishment, diamond mining, as easy as being well-liked and successful in the world of
business world. This make Willy thinks that being attractive is all he needs to become success
and keeps this method teaching his sons. Willy took this into his fundamental core affects the
way he behaved and stuck in his unrealistic dream.
9. Why does Willy feel like Charley laughs at him behind his back? Why does Willy take the
importance of the game so seriously? What about Charley’s behavior makes him angry?
- Due to the fact that there is jealousy that Willy have toward Charley, Willy feel like he was
made fun of. Willy prioritised Biff’s game because it will provide fame and a lot of income
for Biff, however Charley didn’t seem to acknowledge that. In addition, Charley told Willy
that Willy envy of him all his life and offered him a job, Willy felt he was disrespected.
10. When Willy first tells Bernard about Biff’s plans, is he lying or just exaggerating? Explain. Why
does he do this?
- He ashamed that Biff went for a loan. Instead of telling the truth, he just said that Biff was
called by a successful man.
11. Complete Willy’s sentence for him: “I always felt that if a man was impressive, and well liked,
that nothing ––”
- –– he will fail.
12. “We’ve been talking in a dream for fifteen years . . .” Why do you think Biff would ever believe
he was a salesman for Oliver?
- It was Willy that convinced him with fancy words that he’ll be favourable due to his
appearances and attractiveness. In addition, Oliver used to offer him if anything he can help,
unfortunately, he couldn’t even recognise Biff.
13. Happy tries to convince Biff to lie to Willy. What’s the lie? What is Happy’s motive in trying to
persuade his brother to lie to their father?
- Despite his brother try to admit that he failed to ask for a loan, Happy try to pretend it went
well. Happy did this because he try to please his father.
14. Biff calls Willy a liar and a fake. What is the lie? How does it change Biff’s perception of his
father?
- Biff called his father a fake after he saw his father slept with his affair. This disillusionment
affect the perspective of his admirable father. He canceled his plan to go to summer school
and success since then because he can’t trust the way he had been taught by immoral Willy
anymore.
15. The scene in the hotel with the Woman reveals the meaning of the symbol of the stockings. What
does Willy associate with stockings, and how does this flashback explain Willy’s reaction to stockings
when he’s with Linda?
- Stockings symbolise Willy’s failure to provide for his family. Willy brought brand new
stockings as immediate as he can afford one in order to feel empower by affection of a
woman. Subsequently, when he saw Linda trying to repair her old stockings, he felt
uncomfortable to realise that he’s unable to provide as the head of the family.
16. Do you think Linda knew about the Woman? Why or why not? If she were to find out, would it
change her opinion of Willy? How do you know?
 - It is unclear that he acknowledge his affair but it’s more likely that he doesn’t know. In Act I,
when Linda spoke up the word “woman”, Biff somehow shudder as he afraid she might know
about The Woman. If she find out, I think the best answer is that she will treat her husband the
same. She recognised many Willy’s flaws and faults; then try to overlook at it and encourage
him. Furthermore, she knew Willy have suicide thought, she’ll take it easy although she might
not want to.
17. “I’ve got to get some seeds right away. Nothing’s planted. I don’t have a thing in the ground.”
How do we explain Willy’s sense of urgency in finding seeds for planting?
- He’s heartbroken as he’s fired from his job, his son fail to ask for a loan, then he had a fight
with his son telling that it was all his fault all along. He realised that he is a terrible parent, he
need something make he feel little success growing up something, at least at that moment.
18. Which feelings motivate Linda’s reaction to Biff and Happy when they return to the house? Do
you think her reaction is justified or not? Explain.
- Linda was full of anger when she knew that both of her sons left Willy at restaurant. I think
Linda quite reasonable to be mad with them since they already know about suicide thought,
losing his job and his great depression; despite that, they left him for women.
19. What is the proposition (n. – suggested action plan) that Willy describes to Ben? How does Ben
validate Willy’s idea? How does he doubt it?
- Proposition that Willy referred to commiting suicide for insurance money so that Biff can
start his own business. Ben, who is created by his imaginary, supported his idea. He
mentioned diamonds as concrete subject to emphasise uncertainty of Willy future; Diamonds,
insurance money, can be touch and easier to get. Another Ben’s speech, Jungle full diamonds,
metaphorically told Willy about the money his family get after his death.
20. Willy continues to blame Biff’s failures on spite. What does he mean by this? Why does he
continue to believe that Biff is spiting him?
- Willy have high and unrealistic expectation of Biff. He believes that Biff will not fail if he
doing his job with his maximum potential. He believes that it because Biff discovered his
affair makes Biff try to be spiteful on him by selecting alternative occupation choices rather
than his path. Biff, in the other hand, realises his limitation and failure of his and Willy’s. For
instance, once Biff try to ask for money from Howard hoping he will remember and favour
him; however, he found himself as a former irrelevant nameless clerk.
21. “You blew me so full of hot air I could never stand taking orders from anybody!” Who does Biff
blame for this? What does he mean? What are some examples of how Willy has done this throughout
Biff’s life? Is Willy to blame? Explain.
- Biff blames his father for nurture him by instilling the idea of over self esteem. Biff
discovered that all his life, Willy always admire him than it actually was which prevent him
from success. Willy made him believes the key of success is being well-liked; subsequently,
he took this ideology in order to be successful like Willy although, in reality, he wasn’t. For
example, Bernard came around and try to assist Biff about maths exam, Willy convinced Biff
to ignore him because efforts never be as effective as well-liked appearance. Biff developed
thievering behaviours, always getting fired and fell in to unemployment in later of his life as a
consequence of being arrogant and conceited traits. He tried to make his own choices but as
Willy’s circumstance went terribly wrong, he’s pressured to do as Willy wants.
22. Biff tries to make his father realize that he has created an illusion for both of them. What is this
illusion? What is Willy’s reaction?
 - Biff tried to make Willy know that they were not as well-liked as they thought. They never
realise the truth that both of them are fairly fail. Willy unconsciously told Biff that he’s
spiteful to avoid maleficence of reality.

Requiem
1. What is the definition of requiem? Why do you think this final section of the play is called a
requiem?
- Requiem means a mass for the repose of the souls of the dead. This is inspired from the
incident that Willy committed suicide by crashing the car for insurance money.
2. Of his father Biff says, “There’s more of him in that front stoop than in all the sales he ever made.”
What does Biff mean by this? How does this reflect on Biff’s definition of happiness early in Act 1?
3. What does Charley mean when he observes that, “for a salesman, there is no rock bottom to the
life”?
- Charley try to say that all salesman have a dream seeking for success. Hoever, not all dream
can come true; Willy is just a victim in American Dream.
4. Happy resolves to “show you and everybody else that Willy Loman did not die in vain.” How
might Happy do this? Do you think Happy is capable of doing this? Why or why not?
5. “We’re free . . . We’re free . . .” Which freedoms does Linda imply in her last lines at Willy’s
grave? Who has which freedoms?