Death of a Salesman -

Although the decay of Willy Loman runs the majority of the plot, I find Biff to be the more significant character most of the time. Without the realism from both Biff -- as well as his mother Linda, the audience would lack confirmation about the degenerative nature of Willy's mind. The wonder years of America seem to be nothing more than a stage performance put on by corporations that use the average person with a dream as their fodder. It is presented as a subculture built on fake handshakes and tooth whiteners. That being said it's interesting to me how each character attempts to combat the realization that none of them are particularly important regardless of the effort they put in. It's almost like a personality test in its own right. You've got Willy's stubborn denial of the matter. Then there's Happy's self-serving allegiance. And Linda, who I assume is the only other character to understand Biff's belief and at least accept it even if only in silence. In psychology this would fall under the territory of Maslow's Hierarchy of needs, at least to me. It's a theory that some aspects of life need to be fulfilled in order for other's to even be catered to (Pyramid above). My point is Biff is the only one that seems to be capable of being self-actualized, which for reference is a stage that most human beings do not reach. For Comparison Willy and Happy would both be trapped by needs of esteem.