Act Two: Key Events 5-6 Quotes

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Act Two: Key Events 5-6

Here are two quotations showing key events in Act Two:

Key quotation 5

Biff rages as he could not see Bill Oliver.
- “I even believed myself that I’d been a salesman for him! And then he gave me one look and - I realized what a ridiculous lie my whole life has been. We’ve been talking in a dream for fifteen years. I was a shipping clerk.”
  - Like Willy in the previous scene, Biff has undergone a moment of self-realisation, now able to see the “lie” and “dream” he has blindly accepted.

Key quotation 6

When Biff tries to explain what happened with Bill Oliver, Willy gets angry and starts hearing voices in his head:
- “I’m not in my room!... I’m not there, stop it!”
  - As Miller himself said, Willy is now “at that terrible moment where the voice of the past is… as loud as the voice of the present.”

1Introduction

1.1Introductions

1.1.1Author

1.1.2Historical Context

1.1.3Setting

1.1.4Social Issues

2Act One

2.1Key Events

2.1.1Staging

2.1.2Key Events 1&2

2.1.3Key Events 3&4

2.1.4Key Events 5&6

2.1.5Key Events 7&8

2.1.6Key Events 9&10

2.1.7Key Events 11&12

2.2Key Themes & Literary Techniques

2.2.1Foreshadowing, Flashbacks, Settings

2.2.2Family, Reality, Fantasy

3Act Two

3.1Key Events

3.1.1Key Events 1&2

3.1.2Key Events 3&4

3.1.3Key Events 5&6

3.1.4Key Events 7&8

3.1.5Key Events 9&10

3.2Key Themes & Links

3.2.1Pride

3.2.2Metaphor

3.2.3Self-Realisation

4Extended Passage Analysis

4.1Act One

4.1.1Staging

4.1.2The Woman

4.2Act Two

4.2.1In Howard’s Office

4.2.2The Final Confrontation

4.2.3The Requiem

5Character Profiles

5.1Willy & Linda Loman

5.1.1Willy Loman

5.1.2Linda Loman

5.2Biff & Happy Loman

5.2.1Biff Loman

5.2.2Biff's Relationship with Willy

5.2.3Happy Loman

5.3Other Characters

5.3.1Uncle Ben

5.3.2Charley

5.3.3Bernard

6Key Themes

6.1Concepts

6.1.1The American Dream

6.1.2Fathers & Sons

6.1.3Nature & the City

6.1.4Success

6.1.5Men & Women

7Writing Techniques

7.1Structure

7.1.1Act One

7.1.2Act Two

7.2Realism

7.2.1Introduction

7.2.2Staging

7.2.3Language

7.3Expressionism

7.3.1Introduction

7.3.2Staging

7.3.3Music

7.4Symbolism

7.4.1The Garden / Seeds

7.4.2Diamonds

7.4.3Alaska & Africa

7.5Motifs

7.5.1Introduction

7.5.2Cars

7.5.3Silk Stockings

7.5.4Money

7.5.5Mythological Figures

8Historical Context

8.1Historical Context

8.1.1Miller’s Family & The Great Depression

8.1.2America’s Recovery

9Literary Context

9.1Tragedy

9.1.1Introduction

9.2Applying Tragic Concepts

9.2.1The Tragic Hero

9.2.2The Tragic Flaw

9.2.3Recognition

9.2.4Emotional Release

9.2.5Chaos & Disorder

9.2.6Revenge

9.2.7Inevitability

10Critical Debates

10.1Introduction

10.1.1Introduction

10.2The Marxist Reading

10.2.1Marxist Analysis

10.2.2The Marxist Reading

10.3The Feminist Reading

10.3.1Feminist Analysis

10.3.2The Feminist Reading

10.4The Eco-Critical Reading

10.4.1Eco-Critical Analysis

10.4.2The Eco-Critical Reading

10.4.3Post-pastoral

10.5Other Debates

10.5.1The Play as Tragedy

10.5.2The Critics

11Recap: Main Quotes

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