Death of a Salesman
Act 1
1. Describe the setting of the Loman home? What makes it unusual?
2. Give a brief character sketch of Willie Loman, the salesman.
3. What is Willy’s problem at the begging of the play?
4. Characterize Willy’s wife, Linda.
5. What are the names of Willy’s two boys? How old are they?
6. How does Willy feel about Biff? Why?
7. Compare and contrast Biff and Happy.
8. What is the Biff’s greatest complaint about his father’s attitude toward him?
9. What do we learn about Biff’s background? What is his attitude toward life?
10. What is Hap doing? Is he successful? Is he happy?
11. What is Biff’s suggestion? What is Hap’s response?
12. What has Willy been doing while Hap and Biff are talking? What does Hap ask of Biff?
13. Although the play had just begun, what do you think the major conflict is likely to be, and between
what two characters?
14. Willy had just come back from where?
15. Why did Willy come back?
16. Linda wants Willy to stay and work in New York so he will not have to be on the road so much
anymore. What is Willy’s answer? What does this tell us about Willy?
17. What tells us that Willy loves the outdoors and nature?
18. As Willy and Linda talk about the boy and the house, Willy states a modern dilemma. What was it?
19. Willy makes contradictory statements about Biff. What are they?
20. Willy talks about being “boxed in”. What does he mean?
21. What are Hap’s values?
22. Hap and Biff talk about Bill Oliver. What has Oliver told Biff and what worries Biff about Bill Oliver?
23. What does Willy do that makes Biff furious?
24. The scene now takes us into Willy’s world of illusion where he is back in the year 1928 when Biff
and Happy were both young men still in High School. Who is Willy talking to in his illusory daydream?
25. How old are they? What are they doing?
26. What was Willy’s surprise for the boys?
27. What is Biff holding? Where did he get it?
28. How does Willy treat Biff? How does Happy act around his father?
29. What things does Willy tell the boys about his sales trip?
30. What big event is occurring next Friday?
31. What does Biff plan to do for Willy?
32. Who appears? Describe the king of person Bernard is and how the Lomans treat him?
33. What info does Bernard give Uncle Willy concerning Biff?
34. Why does Willy get angry with Bernard?
35. Why does Willy want his boys to be in physical peak position?
36. Why does Willy contradict himself in the discussion with Linda?
37. How did Willy first describe his sales to Linda? What made him tell her the truth? What is his
excuse?
38. What does Willy confess to Linda about himself? How does this differ from what he had told the
boys?
39. Why do you think he felt that he had to lie to the boys?
40. What does Willy feel is his chief problem in not being a successful salesman?
41. What does this scene tell us about Willy Loman?
42. Who is Charley? What does he offer Willy as they play cards?
43. Why doesn’t Willy take Charley’s offer for a job?
44. Who is Ben? Is Ben a success?
45. What had Ben at one time asked Willy to do? Why didn’t Willy go?
46. Is Ben still alive?
47. In the scene with Ben, what do we find out about Willy’s father?
48. What did Biff and Happy do while Ben was there?
49. Willy goes outside. Biff comes in and talks to his mother. Willy’s daydreams are the worst when?
50. What ultimatum does Linda give Biff?
51. What do we find out about Willy’s state of affairs from Linda?
52. What does Linda call her sons?
53. Where do they get the money to live on?
54. What does Biff call his father to Linda, his mother?
55. What does Linda tell Biff that Willy is trying to do? What does she have?
56. What does she tell Biff about Willy’s future?
57. Where does Biff think that he, Willy and Hap should be or do?
58. Does this upset Willy when he overhears it?
59. What has Willy done with his hands in the house that proves that Biff is right about the
carpentering?
60. When Biff realizes that his father is upset with him and becoming angry, what does he promise?
61. What is Willy’s plan for the immediate future?
ACT 2
1. Willy goes to Howard Wagner’s office and asks to stay in New York to work. How does this turn out?
2. What is somewhat pathetic about Willy as he begs Howard for a different job?
3. Where is Willy supposed to meet his sons after his meeting with Howard Wagner?
4. As Willy is fired by Howard Wagner, he turns in a daze and runs into whom? What do we find out about
Bernard?
5. What does Bernard ask Willy about Biff?
6. What does Willy answer?
7. When Willy was talking to Howard Wagner, He told him a story about his reasons for becoming a
salesman. What should the death of a salesman be like?
8. What things did we learn about Biffs past in ACT2?
9. What happened when Biff went to ask Oliver for money? Why did this happen?
10. What happened in the restaurant that night when Willy, Hap, and Biff meet?