On p. 126, Willy says, “But the funeral—(Straightening up) Ben, that funeral will be massive! They’ll come from Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire! All the old-timers with the strange license plates—that boy will be thunderstruck, Ben, because never realized—I am known, Ben, and he’ll see it with his eyes once and for all…”
Despite his expectations, how does Willy’s funeral demonstrate his mediocrity (his averageness) rather than his greatness?
What to look for in student response:
Willy Loman’s funeral is a cruel and pathetic end to the salesman's life. As we’ve discussed in class, it is a representation of both his literal and figurative death. Only his family and Charley attend, while none of his customers, friends, or colleagues bother to pay their respects. Since a funeral often shows how much a person was liked and respected, it shows that not a lot of people liked or respected him. This reveals that his status as a salesman was never “great.”