Life Will Go On

1343 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: American literature after world war 2

There is a common notion that money cannot buy happiness. This may be true for most, but not for John Cheever’s protagonist, Neddy Merrill, in “The Swimmer”. John Cheever was born May 27, 1912 in Quincy, Massachusetts. He has written many short stories for various publishers such as The Atlantic, The Yale Review and The New Yorker. In 1930, John Cheever published his first story in The New Republic; and in 1941, he married Mary Winternitz, with whom he had two children, Susan and Benjamin. Cheever served in the army during World War II; and after he wrote scripts for television series such as Life with Father. He also taught at a variety of institutions such as the University of Iowa, Boston University, Barnard College, and Sing Sing Prison. He received the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, and the National Book Critics Circle Award. On June 18, 1982, Cheever died of cancer (Wilson 2). One of Cheever’s most well known short stories is “The Swimmer”. It was first published in 1964 at a time of great prosperity. This was when most of the middle and upper class Americans were enjoying the wealth and affluence of the post war era after World War II. It was during this time, when the suburbs, the setting of “The Swimmer,” grew in rapid quantity (Wilson 6). “The Swimmer” is a short story about a middle-aged man name Neddy Merrill who decides to swim home one day through the pools of all his friends and neighbors. Throughout the journey home, Neddy encounters many friends, and some conflicts, as he makes his way along the ‘Lucinda River’. Half way through the short story, Neddy’s journey becomes rough and the owners of the pools he has been crossing have begun to be rude to him. When he arrives home, he comes to fi...

... middle of paper ...

...heever's 'The Swimmer..'" Explicator 50.1 (Fall 1991): 49-50. Rpt. in Short Story Criticism. Ed. Jelena O. Krstovic. Vol. 120. Detroit: Gale, 2009. Literature Resource Center. Web. 21 Jan. 2014.
Ed. Jelena O. Krstovic. Vol. 120. Detroit: Gale, 2009. Literature Resource Center. Web. 21 Jan. 2014.
Graves, Nora Calhoun. "'The Symptomatic Colors in John Cheever's 'The Swimmer..'" Critical Essays on John Cheever. Ed. R. G. Collins. Boston: G. K. Hall & Co., 1983. 191-193. Rpt. in Short Story Criticism. Ed. Janet Witalec. Vol. 57. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Literature Resource Center. Web. 21 Jan. 2014.
The Swimmer. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print. http://www.ahschool.com/file.cfm?resourceid=6067&filename=20091207184417_734640623434.pdf
"The Swimmer." Short Stories for Students. Ed. Kathleen Wilson. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 1997. 278-294. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 29 Jan. 2014.

Show More
Related

  • Surrealism vs. Realism in The Swimmer, by John Cheever

    548 Words  | 2 Pages

    John Cheever uniquely crafted the story “The Swimmer” by using a mix of surrealism and realism throughout the story. Most people when they read “The Swimmer” they have to reevaluate it to comprehend what is happening. The reason for that is because Cheever shifts between surrealism and realism so much that the reader does not even notice. The story starts out with Neddy being so strong and youthful, but as the story goes on he weakens and ages. When he was youthful Neddy decided to swim every pool in his neighborhood. As he ages and weakens, the pools get harder to swim and the seasons pass without him even noticing.

    Read More

  • The Common of Ellison's Battle Royal and Hemingway's Soldier's Home

    1172 Words  | 3 Pages

    Ed. Jennifer Smith. Vol. 11. Detroit: Gale Group, 2001. Literature Resource Center. Web. 12 Mar. 2014.

    Read More

  • What You Pawn I Will Redeem by Sherman Alexie

    1115 Words  | 3 Pages

    "Unit 2: Reading & Writing About Short Fiction." ENGL200: Composition and Literature. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011. 49-219. Web. 19 Apr. 2014.

    Read More

  • Allusion and Symbolism in The Swimmer, by John Cheever

    746 Words  | 2 Pages

    John Cheever does not merely state the theme of his story, he expresses his theme, as a good writer should, in a variety of metaphors and analogies coupled with powerful imagery. In The Swimmer, Cheever writes and underscores his primary theme of alcoholism in many ways, such as his use of autumnal imagery and the color green. However, there is also some very prominent symbolism and allusions that serve to highlight the theme while also augmenting the artistic and poetic nature of the story. One very important use of symbolism is in the “perverted sacraments” as originally pointed out by Hal Blythe in 1984. Along side these symbols, Hal Blythe, along with Charlie Sweet, later discovered a clear allusion to Ponce de Leòn in 1989.

    Read More

  • Character Comparison: “The Swimmer” and “Babylon Revisited”

    1033 Words  | 3 Pages

    Cheever, John. “The Swimmer”. Short Fiction: Classic and Contemporary. 6th ed. Ed. Charles Bohner and Lyman Grant. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2006.

    Read More

  • Denial and Alcoholism Exposed in The Swimmer, by John Cheever

    845 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Swimmer by John Cheever begins at Helen and Donald Westerhazy’s pool when Neddy Merrill makes the decision to journey eight miles home by swimming through a series of pools, he calls the “Lucinda River” (297) and walking when unable to swim. While he making his way back home, he stops at fourteen old friends’ houses and drinks before continuing on if possible. By the end of Neddy’s journey, he is exhausted and comes to the realization that he has lost not only his house but also his wife and daughters, and also his so-called friends and even a mistress. Cheever suggests that alcoholism is a destruction of life through the use of symbolism, imagery, and characterization.

    Read More

  • A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson, by Mary Rowlandson

    1475 Words  | 3 Pages

    Literature. Vol. A. Ed. Nina Baym and Julia Reidhead. 17 ed. New York: W.W. Norton &

    Read More

  • Alcoholism in The Swimmer, by John Cheever

    1140 Words  | 3 Pages

    Cheever, John. "The Swimmer." The Northon Anthology American Literature. 8th ed. Vol. E. New York: W.W. Norton, 2012. Print.

    Read More

  • The Awakening and Ethan Frome

    943 Words  | 2 Pages

    Vol. 136. The. Detroit: Gale Books, 2008. Literature Resource Center -.

    Read More

  • Psychoanalytical Criticism of The Swimmer by John Cheever

    1435 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the short story The Swimmer by John Cheever, one of the dominant themes is the passage of time. In this short story time seems to pass as reality does with us unaware of its passing. The main character is the protagonist hero, Neddy Merrill who embarks on a traditional theme of a homeward journey. The scene opens on a warm mid-summer day at an ongoing pool party with Neddy and his wife Lucinda. The pool is “fed by an artesian well with a high iron content, was a pale shade of green.

    Read More

  • The Destruction of the American Dream in John Cheever’s The Swimmer

    844 Words  | 2 Pages

    In John Cheever's story The Swimmer, Neddy Merrill is a successful man. His success is measured by the prestigious neighborhood he lives in with tennis, golf and swimming pools. Neddy has made it socially and financially. He is never without an invitation to social events, which always include drinking. He is at the top of his game. While attending the party at the Westerhazy's house with his wife, he has the desire to swim home. He sees the line of swimming pools that stretch eight miles to his home, he calls them the “Lucinda River” (297) . He is a confident man and thought "of himself as a legendary figure" (250-251). He dives in and when he gets out on the other side, he informs his wife he is swimming home. Cheever uses each pool that Neddy visits to show the passage of time in Neddy's life, and reveals how his alcoholism, infidelity and continual denial of his actions led to the destruction of his American dream.

    Read More

  • The Swimmer Delusion

    578 Words  | 2 Pages

    Within John Cheever’s short story, The Swimmer, fiction estranges the reader from the timeline of events because the information given by the protagonist, Neddy Merrill is unreliable. As the story progresses, the audience can observe how Neddy becomes aware of the changes in his surroundings, his physical transformation, as well as a shift in the way others interact with him. All of these developments deceive the rate at which time is passing throughout the story.

    Read More

  • Comparing Where Are you going, Where Have You Been and Hills Like White Elephants

    1329 Words  | 3 Pages

    Rpt. in Short Story Criticism. Ed. Joseph Palmisano. Vol.

    Read More

  • Literary Analysis: "Everyday Use"

    692 Words  | 2 Pages

    Detroit: Gale Books, 2007. Literature Resource Center -. Web. The Web. The Web.

    Read More

  • Women as Objects in A Woman on a Roof

    1171 Words  | 3 Pages

    Atack, Margaret., Short Story Criticism. Vol 6. Ed. Thomas Vottler.Detroit, MI: Gale Research, Co., 1990.

    Read More

More about Life Will Go On

Open Document