The desire to excel over anonymity and win over being a meaningless individual in the world exists in everyone, to some extent. All people want to be remembered in some way, impact the world, or be more than just another face in the crowd. Everyone longs to be someone of importance and well liked by others. Individuals use a motivating force or desire that comes from deep within the soul and influences the decisions he or she makes in their lives. Willy and Bernard are two characters that exemplify the desire to overcome anonymity and became someone of importance in the world. Willy was so infatuated with being well liked and succeeding in the world that he created false dreams in his mind in order to overcome anonymity. On the contrary, Bernard used his desires of success as a positive force to do the right thing and become an accomplished man. .
Willy's character focuses on becoming more than just another face in the crowd. Willy's life long dream was to be a successful, well-liked salesman. Willy idolized Dave Singleman, the epitome of the perfect salesmen, and hoped that he could follow in his footsteps. Willy wished to have crowds of people, from all over the country, at his funeral, just as Dave Singleman had had. Willy longed for money and wealth, in order to support his family and have a comfortable house. Not only did Willy have false dreams of his own to live up to, but he also created false dreams of what he wished for his son, Biff, to accomplish in his life. He desired Biff to be something great. He urged his son to be something more than a meaningless individual. He wanted him to get a good job and make a good living. Willy did not want to accept the fact that he and his son were just ordinary individuals. "Pop, I'm a dime a dozen and so are you." (Pg 132) Biff realized that he would never be anything great. "Will you take that phony dream and burn it before something happens.
