Willy from Death of a Salesman, and Hickey from The Iceman Cometh Essay

Willy from Death of a Salesman, and Hickey from The Iceman Cometh - Essay Example Willy becomes entrenched in a quagmire of lies, delusions and self-deception, which ultimately leads him to commit suicide. Theodore Hickman (Hickey), the principal character in Eugene O’Neill’s â€Å"The Iceman Cometh† is a smooth-talking salesman. He comes to Harry Hope’s saloon preaching the gospel of salvation, exhorting his drunken friends to divest themselves of their â€Å"pipe dreams† of tomorrow and make peace with themselves. Hickey’s murder of the tomorrow dreams will bring ruin to the bar, thus Hickey’s advent is the advent of the â€Å"Iceman† or Death. We learn later that Hickey has brought death to his own house, murdering his wife. When he confesses to the murder, Hickey’s gospel of salvation reveals itself as its own pipe dream, a delusion that lets him evade his guilt over his crime. While both characters are salesmen, they differ in temperament and outlook. Willy Loman is an insecure, self-deluded salesman who desperately believes in the American Dream but never achieves it. The fact that he uses gardening as a metaphor for success and failure indicates that he subconsciously acknowledges that his chosen profession is a poor choice, given his natural inclinations (Willy tells Stanley in Act II: â€Å"Nothing’s planted. I don’t have a thing in the ground.†). Here, the garden functions as a substitute for his failed career and his son Biff’s wayward career. Willy Loman is a dreamer, dreaming of a better life as promised by the American Dream. He dreams about being a super salesman like his hero Dave Singleman, a mythic salesman who achieved great fame and popularity. Willy visualizes having people remember and love him, considering it the ultimate satisfaction (Willy tells Howard Wagner in Act II: â€Å"And when I saw that, I realized that selling was the greatest career a man could want. ‘Cause what could be more satisfying than to be able to go, at the age of

The current macroeconomic situation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The current macroeconomic situation - Essay Example This means that the people in America were borrowing in order to fund spending (Tilton, 2011). A deficit then is created. This situation is expected to result into inflation. Nevertheless, as of 2010 until the present, the private sector’s spending has been in moderate level (Tilton, 2011). There is a rise in saving and a drop of spending (Tilton, 2011). The country’s GDP (Gross Domestic Product) is used to determine this fact. Second, credit conditions have improved for both smaller businesses and individuals; more and more banks have stabilized their lending standards (Tilton, 2011). This means that banks are not anymore imposing strict policies in terms of lending. If this is the case, then, it would be easier for smaller businesses and consumers â€Å"to spend a bit more† (Tilton, 2011). Despite these good economic findings, there are three key factors which could hinder full economic growth in the United States. These are the following: (1) large federal bud get deficit; (2) large increases in commodity prices; and (3) weakening of housing prices (Tilton, 2011). To prevent these factors from becoming a big economic problem, the federal government should adopt fiscal tightening instead of fiscal expansion. At this time, to use an expansionary fiscal policy would worsen the situation.