Writing Homework Help

You are welcome to watch the movie on your own, although some people might find noticing certain elements of the film easier on a big screen. You can find the film on YouTube here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMqiCtq5VLs

After you view the complete film, please do the following:

1. Pick one extended speech from the film/play (when a character is speaking for more than a few lines) and discuss how that speech reflects what you see as the deeper meaning of the play.

2. Pick on visual element of the film and discuss how it reflects that same deeper meaning of the play. The visual element can be almost any visual information you got from the play, but I’d suggest trying to find moments when the camera lingers on people in a specific position for a few moments.

As you think about the deeper meaning of the play, you’re welcome to take the play in any direction you see fit. But here are some questions to consider when trying to reach that deeper meaning. You don’t have to answer any of these questions, but attempting to might help you find that deeper meaning.

Your speech and your visual element cannot both be from the same act of the play. You need to choose a speech from Act 1 and a visual element from Act 2, or vice versa.

Make the deeper meaning of the play evident at the beginning.

The entire response does not need to be longer than two paragraphs, but those paragraphs should be robust. I expect responses of 1-2 pages that show me a deep engagement with the film/play.

1. Willy seems to dream a lot about being rich. What is the play saying about being rich, or the act of getting rich? Or, for that matter, what is it saying about being poor or short on money?

2. Willy is dying. Linda says, toward the end of Act 1, that “attention must be paid.” What does Linda mean by this, and what does it suggest about the play as a whole?

3. What is Biff’s problem? Is it just that he saw his father cheating on his mother, or is that symbolic of some deeper problem?