"Death of a Salesman" by Arthur Miller - What was wrong with Willy's dreams?

One of the essential conflicts in Arthur Miller's drama "The Death of a Salesman", is addressed in the quote uttered by Biff; "He had all the wrong dreams. All, all wrong." Although Willy's dreams had their problems, they weren't wrong, they were just carried through in the wrong ways. Willy is a man who wants the best for his family. He wants his sons to be successful and his family to be happy. In doing …

…dream of his family being happy. If Willy died, his family received $20,000. This seemed like the easy answer to Willy's dream but it once emphasises that Willy's dreams aren't wrong but he goes the wrong way about achieving them. Willy's dreams are not wrong. They are right for him, they are what he wants. But if it is really something you really want, you have to be prepared to work for it. Willy obviously wasn't.