And I looked at the pen and I thought, what the hell am I grabbing this for? Why am I trying to become what I don't want to be when all I want is out there, waiting for me the minute I say I know who I am!" (Miller 98). Biff makes it known to Willy that he does not believe in his father's mantra and has his own plan for life despite contradicting Willy. However, with a typical never-say-never attitude, Willy makes one last-ditch effort to prove himself correct. To do so, Willy kills himself hoping for a large attendance at his funeral that would prove the validity of his mantra to Biff. Unfortunately, despite Willy's efforts, the funeral is a dud and makes no progress on convincing Biff. Will's example is not the typical success story of a prosperous American, but rather an exposition of the realistic downside to the unwavering and irrational hope associated with Americans.
Similarly, A Streetcar Named Desire exemplifies the shortcomings and demise of the staunchly hopeful American through the experiences of Blanche. In this case, Blanche has strong faith in her ideal to "count on the kindness of strangers"(Cite this). She goes through the story, and her life, without wavering in her belief that others are destined to take care of her. She makes this belief clear when she explains, "After the death of Allan--intimacies with strangers was all I seemed able to fill my empty heart with. I think it was panic, just panic, that drove me from one to another, hunting for some protection" (Williams 128). After her romantic misfortune of discovering her husbands homosexuality, Blanche begins to search for shelter in strangers. This fabrication of faith in strangers gives her a sense of comfort despite the dire circumstances she may be experiencing. The search for comfort in hard times by fabricating an excuse for hope is effervescent in American culture, and Blanch is an exemplar of this traditional American value.
