Besides interacting with his wife and his sons, Willy spends much time during the play in fantasy conversations with his long-dead brother Ben, whom Willy still idolizes, calling on him for guidance, for instance, when he is fired from his job. Toward the end of the play—when Willy has dreamed up a scheme to kill himself so that Biff can receive the money from his insurance policy and finally become successful—he "debates" the merits of his plan with Ben, finally deciding to go ahead with it after Ben (in his mind) comes to agree with him that it's a good idea.