2 things I can do

Many factors influence one to see the world differently, missing key parts and limiting what we learn. These factors include things like money, social media, and family. In my life it is apparent these are 3 factors that play huge roles in how I think and perceive the world. Firstly I think family, money, and social media are connected in a way. Social media creates this perfect and idealistic perception of life. This then causes money to be the main goal to live up to this life we see all over the internet. I think I can limit my time on social media and spend more time with face to face interactions, getting more in touch with real life situations. When worrying less about ideals, family influence, such as parents, will still sway views. I think I can make an effort to focus in the moment, taking in everything that I observe resulting in learning more about the world, others, and myself.

Death of Salesman intro

How is the American Dream characteristic of American ideals and philosophy? What are the differences between the materialistic and the idealistic values associated with the American Dream?

In today’s world, the American dream is hugely shaped by social media and the idealistic lifestyle based around materialistic wants. This concept of the American dream is molded by desires, the fancy sports cars, huge mansions in the Hills of Hollywood, and the millions of pictures seen of people travelling across the globe. Seeing these materialistic things daily, plants a seed in the heads of those viewing that this is what success looks like. What we don’t see what is going on in these people’s lives behind the perfect moments captured on camera, because only the best ones are shared, leaving society to assume that these people live some perfect life, absent of stress, worries, or sadness. The idealistic values will forever exist, this perception of a perfect lifestyle that will always be an ultimate goal in society. Consistently striving for peace and acting upon ethics and morals is what ideals are all about, even thought in todays world many of these things are sway far from.

What was happening economically and socially in the United States in 1949? Was it fairly easy or difficult to get a job? What was America’s standing in the world?

During the World War 2  men were leaving their jobs and therefore the woman back home started woking for the first time, filling in the jobs of the men at work. These women usually were just doing housework, cooking cleaning, and looking after the children, the traditional woman’s job. After the war, men were coming back and returning to their homes and normal lives. After World War 2, the U.S. went through a major recession, and were economically unstable. This was because after the war the men would return to their normal jobs, but the problem was that the women didn’t want to return to their traditional ways in the household, they enjoyed working. This made it difficult to get a job because historically only one gender was working, and now men and women were all working.

What is your definition of salesman? How is a salesman different from someone in another occupation? What attitudes do you think a salesman should have to be successful? What attitudes would hinder him?

A salesman’s job is all about advertising and selling products to consumers, making the more you sell directly relate to the amount of money you take home. A salesman has to have a positive and personable attitude, as this sets the tone and mood for interactions with customers, ultimately making the connections you build with buyers have an impact on your success in selling products. This job has similarities to other occupations, as the harder you work results in you being more successful, and your tone and attitude towards others can create a more positive outcome. There are also differences in this job as you don’t have a set wage, it can change as a result of how many products you sell, and the price of the products you are selling. For example a salesman selling cars and houses will make more than one selling shoes, all because of the drastic differences in price of items being sold.

What effect do the expectations of parents have on the behavior of their children? In what ways might parental expectations be beneficial? In what ways might they be detrimental?

The expectations of parents can help motivate their child or the outcome be opposite of their hopes. Parents that have very high expectations of their children end up putting a lot of pressure on them, whether that be through school, sports, or extra curricular activities, if the child doesn’t meet the standards created by their parents they may seem themselves as a failure therefore shutting down. The behaviour of children is all based off of their parents expectations, and its all a balancing act in order to make sure the opposite action isn’t a result. Parental expectations can be beneficial in ways of motivation and setting boundaries and rules for their child, as these expectations over time change and develop as their child ages.