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Death of a Salesman | The Boston scene / episode

 

Die Boston Szene im Hotel ist eine der wichtigen Szenen des Dramas, in der es eine Wende gibt.
Hier erfährst du mehr.

The Boston episode (Act II pp. 124,5 - 130,11)


» Honesty at the beginning of the scene and fake at the end (of Willy)
» Biff admires Willy, asks questions when he notices the lady
» Willy lies first of all even tries to convince Biff that the woman is only taking a shower
» Biff is very disappointed (tears 128,21 ff)
 

Analysis of the scene in the Boston hotel


In the restroom of the restaurant Willy loses himself in daydreams about his trip to Boston where Biff has caught him with another woman. Biff visits him to tell him about his flunked math test and to ask him for help, but after recognizing that his father has cheated on his mother, he doesn't want his help anymore and he decides to quit school.
» At the beginning of the scene Biff reacts sceptically towards his father by asking many questions, because it took s Willy so long to open the door and that shows that Willy has a bad conscience about the whole thing (p. 125 l. 23-26).
» Biff has a guilty mind because of the flunked math test and he now wants Willy to help him, which shows that he not only trusts his father but also has a high opinion on him. Willy is his hero and Biff is convinced that his father can help him in that situation (p. 125 l. 29).
» Calling Biff "Biffo" (p. 126 l.1), giving him orders (p. 129 l.22) and also the way he talks shows that Willy feels caught in the act and tries to cover up his indisposition concerning the situation. He talks in a loud and friendly voice and laughs all the time (p. 127 l.5).
» As Biff hears the lady, hidden in the bathroom, laughing, Willy is striving for the ordinary and tells him that the noise comes from the next door (p. 127 l.13). And even as the woman appears, Willy tries to convince Biff that she's just taking a shower, but his body language shows, that he's lying by pushing her out of the room (p. 127 l.21).
» The woman becomes bitchy, because she wants her promised stockings and at this point Biff realizes that his father does not only cheat on his mother, he also pays the woman with stockings, which were actually meant for his mother, while she has to mend her old ones (p. 128 l.5).
» Biff is very disappointed, which is expressed by his tears (p. 128 l.21) and by the way he names his father. He doesn't call him "pop" anymore, which is a very friendly and intimate expression, but only "dad" (p. 126 l.11, p. 129 l.21).
» Calling him a "phony little fake" (p. 129 l. 21) shows the loss of his respect for Willy. He doesn't take him seriously anymore and it changed his whole opinion about his father.
» Willy has lost his status of a hero and that makes him change his behaviour. He becomes loud and aggressive and tries to give Biff orders, but Biff doesn't want to be like his father anymore nor does he want his help, and he decides to leave and quit school, which is a very drastical decision in his life (p. 128 l.27, p. 129 l.13)
 
This scene is the crucial point of teh drama. It explains why the close relationship between Willy and Biff broke apart and it also gives reasons for their severe arguments during the drama.
Willy always criticizes Biff's unsettled life, although it's mainly his own fault that Biff wants to quit school.
 
Important text scene:
Willy: She's nothing to me, Biff. I was lonely, I was so terribly lonely.
Biff: You - you gave her Mama's stockings. (His tears break through and he rises to go.)
Elaborated by Jennifer Banard and Patricia Bielemeyer


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