Death of a Salesman: Family Hindered By Their Dysfunctional Nature In Death of a Salesman, Miller presents the Lomans a family hindered by their dysfunctional nature. Even though Miller portrays Willy Loman as the main character of the story, Willy’s lack of praiseworthy traits make him unworthy to be the protagonist. Biff is heroic in that as an adolescent, his father impresses faulty ideals on him, which he later discards in a search for his true identity. Ultimately, Willy’s son Biff is the character who does not succeed in regards to his father’s dreams, but does recognize his tru