Glengarry Glen Ross Act Two, from Lingk's entrance to Lingk's exit Summary & Analysis

Summary

Roma sees Lingk outside, walking toward the office. When Lingk walks in, Roma pretends to be deep in conversation with Levene, a "client" who he refers to by the false name "D. Ray Morton." Lingk tells Roma that he needs to talk to him. Roma politely steamrolls over Lingk's attempt at getting his attention, improvising chatter about "Mr. Morton's" important work for American Express. Occasionally Roma asks Levene questions about his work, and Levene struggles to come up with realistic-sounding answers. Roma is able to smooth over Levene's stumbles and make the performance convincing. Lingk cannot get a word in edgewise.

Roma pretends to remember that he needs to rush "Mr. Morton" to the airport. He apologizes to Lingk, telling him that he will get in touch with him soon, and starts to leave with Levene. Roma is almost out the door when Lingk blurts out that his wife has insisted that he cancel the deal that they signed the night before. Roma says that he understands Lingk's wife's reaction, that it is a sensible one, and that they will discuss it when Roma is available next, on Monday. Lingk says that Monday is too late, as his wife has called the Attorney General's office and has been informed that the law allows only three business days in which to cancel the sale. Roma tries to trick Lingk into thinking that Monday is within that three-day timeframe, but Lingk knows that it is not. Roma tells Lingk that there is nothing to worry about because he knows for a fact that his check has not been cashed yet.

Baylen finishes interrogating Aaronow. Baylen calls for Levene, and Levene, still pretending to be "D. Ray Morton," ignores him. The scene becomes chaotic as Aaronow emerges from his interview, complaining about Baylen, and Williamson comes out, also trying to get Levene's attention. Levene decides to rush quickly into the office with Baylen, hoping to hide the fact that he is Levene and not "Morton."

Aaronow vents his frustrations about the interrogation. Williamson, angry, commands Aaronow to go to lunch. Roma apologizes to Lingk for all of the chaos he has just witnessed. Baylen puts his head out of Williamson's office again and tries to call in Roma. Lingk, nervous, starts to leave. Roma tries to calm him down, assuring Lingk that whatever the problem is, they can work it out. Roma tells Lingk that the deal is not what is important here, and starts into a philosophical speech about marriage.

Baylen demands to talk to Roma again. Roma tells Williamson to explain to Baylen that he is in the middle of conducting business with Mr. Lingk. Williamson hears Lingk's name and assumes that Lingk, upset by the obvious disarray of the office, fears for the safety of his contract. Trying to help, Williamson reassures Lingk that his contract went out to the bank and his check was cashed yesterday—exactly what Roma has been trying to tell him did not happen. Lingk, flustered, apologizes to Roma and exits.

Analysis

This part of Act Two, in which Lingk shows up at the office and Roma improvises an elaborate con to distract him, is the most outrageous example of a scam in the play. Although the salesmen are not necessarily criminals—technically there is nothing illegal about convincing people to buy worthless property at inflated prices—they do rely on dishonest manipulation as a cornerstone of their work. For Roma to pretend that Levene is "D. Ray Morton," an important businessman who needs to be rushed to the airport immediately, clearly exceeds the scope of fair salesmanship, and enters the realm of outright, egregious lying. Roma's attempt to confuse Lingk about how many days he has, legally, to reverse his decision, is hilarious for its obvious sneakiness.

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