He has struggled to be someone that he is not and tries to become successful in a career for which he has always been unsuited. In what sense is Willy ironic when he comments that it is obscene for Biff not to have found himself by the age of thirty-four?Īs it becomes clear as the play develops, Willy has not understood his place in life. It makes us think, too, of a boat casting off from the jetty and moving into open water. The phrase “casting off” reminds us of the way insects (like cicadas emerging from the nymph stage) discard their shells and enter a new and dangerous existence. As a mother, she knows that one raises children in order, all too soon, to let them go out into the world and live their own lives. While Willy begins to rail against the ironic situation that as soon as a mortgage is paid off there is no one to live in the house, Linda comments that “life is a casting off.” This is wise and mature thinking.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |