“The American dream has become a nightmare” (Sanders). The American Dream is the ideal life of comfort and happiness that Americans wish to achieve. Death Of A Salesman written by Arthur Miller and The Catcher In The Rye written by JD Salinger are two very different books, however they share the idea that each protagonist wants to achieve the American dream. Willy Loman, the protagonist of Death Of A Salesman, is trying to be successful by earning a large amount of money and having a happy and loving family. Holden Caulfield, protagonist of The Catcher In The Rye, is trying to do the same by transforming himself into a better student, friend, brother and son. Both of these stories share the common theme that when striving for a goal as prestigious as the ideal of American comfort, an individual often finds himself embroiled in mental health issues. The two characters exhibit signs of these problems when they begin to have hallucinations, mood swings, and reach a vivid point of self-realization. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay First, both Willy and Holden experience hallucinations and lucid dreams of their pasts during their travels in the books. Willy experiences flashbacks to when his two sons, Biff and Happy, were younger. These flashbacks go back to the times when Willy was proud of his children; for example, a flashback to when Biff was younger and a football star going to school on a scholarship, before one of his games. Willy daydreams about his dead older brother Ben, who represents wealth and success for Willy because he has found a diamond mine in an African jungle. He also experiences flashbacks and hallucinations about the woman he had an affair with. The woman is a representation of Willy's loneliness in his life and marriage. These hallucinations and flashbacks become dangerous for Willy: “Suddenly I couldn't drive anymore. The car kept ending up in the lane, you know? […] No, it's me, it's me. Suddenly I realize I'm going sixty miles an hour and I don't remember the last five minutes. I – I can't do it – I have to focus on this” (Miller 13). This shows that he becomes an unsafe driver while he is swerving off the road and also starts running the traffic lights. Willy's flashbacks and daydreams represent his development as he thinks back to when he was a successful man. Holden also experiences hallucinations. He often sees and talks to his younger brother, Allie, who died at age 10 of leukemia. “I started talking, out loud, to Allie. I do this sometimes when I get depressed. [...] 'Okay, go home, get your bike and I'll meet you in front of Bobby's house. Hurry up'” (Salinger 99). He also daydreams about himself in situations where he is dying, such as when he walks down the street and imagines crossing the street but never making it to the other side because he was killed first. “Every time I got to the end of a block and stepped off the damn sidewalk, I had this feeling that I would never get to the other side of the street, I thought I was going to go down, down, down and no one will ever see me again” ( Salinger 65). Holden's flashbacks and daydreams represent the happiness and feeling of success he had with his brother before Allie died. The hallucinations experienced by Willy and Holden are side effects of their mental illnesses, caused by their desire for the American dream. Additionally, both Willy and Holden become very emotionally unstable characters and begin to have mood swings. Willy's mood changes rapidly. For example whenWilly was in the kitchen with his wife having fun. Then suddenly he got very angry about the kitchen appliances that he and Linda own because he always pays for them, but other families have better ones. Willy also contradicted himself often, saying things like “Biff is a lazy bum. [...] There's one thing about Biff: he's not lazy” (Miller 16). This shows that he has trouble deciphering how he feels and takes his frustration out on those around him. Holden is also unable to control his emotions. His mood fluctuates between feeling depressed, sad, angry and often raises his voice at others for no reason. An example of this is when he hires a prostitute. He later decides he doesn't want her, which results in him getting punched by his pimp. The woman proceeds to take five dollars from Holden's wallet, which angers him; “Suddenly I started crying. […] But I swear I'm crazy. I swear to God I am” (Salinger 56). Holden also contradicts himself and the way he feels. For example, when he dates a childhood friend named Sally, he at first confesses his love for her, but later tells her that she is a "real pain in the ass" (Salinger 159). This shows that while trying so hard to achieve their American dreams, their mental health is deteriorating, as evidenced by their mood swings. Ultimately, the two characters both reach a point of personal fulfillment in their lives, where they make their own big decisions to help themselves become their own idea of ​​success. . At the end of the book, Willy realizes that his idea of ​​the American dream is unrealistic to achieve and understands that he will never achieve success in business and that he will not be able to control the lives of his children. From this, try to find an alternative solution on how to be successful. He realizes that he is no longer able to support his family with money from sales and Charley's money, so he begins planting seeds in their garden with the idea of ​​providing food for his family. Next, come to the final decision on how to succeed. He decides that with his $20,000 in insurance he will be able to take care of his wife and two children better than he could if he continued his life now. Throughout the book, it is foreshadowed that Willy commits suicide as he is suicidal from the beginning; “He's trying to kill himself. [...] The insurance inspector came. He said they have evidence. That all these accidents in the last year were no accidents" (Miller 58), in the end, his final decision is to kill himself. At the end of Holden's journey through the story, he comes to realize that he is taking a bad direction in his life and that at the rate he is going he will not be able to achieve his idea of ​​the American dream. He realizes that he will not be able to be a successful student or please his parents with the way he behaves. Throughout the entire story, Holden exhibits suicidal thoughts and tendencies very frequently: “Anyway, I'm kinda glad they invented the atomic bomb, if there ever was another war, I'll damn well sit on it. I swear to God I will” (Salinger 263). During this time, Holden admits to feeling depressed but avoids admitting that he has many unhealthy coping mechanisms and that he needs help that he cannot achieve his dreams at this time in his life, but if he makes some changes he has the right to be very successful. At the end of the book he admits that he needs help and is admitted to a psychiatric ward for treatment. The idea of ​​personal fulfillment for the two characters shows them reaching a point of understanding the mental illnesses they mention,.