The Swimmer John Cheever Character Analysis

Neddy Merrill is a self-identified legendary figure, decides to swim across the Lucinda River, another Neddy Merrill identification. This river: a suburban mass tickled with swimming pools, becomes the determining aspect of John Cheever’s “The Swimmer.” Every page is filled with water and questionable “drinks” to keep Neddy steady and social. The character’s social behavior is a consistent reaction to the consistent addition of drinks into his hand for a period of time. Neddy’s voyage first across town, then across the county are nothing promised, and nothing gained, even to himself. The surrealism of the pools and the small conversations with seemingly unimportant characters are what gives Neddy an identifiable problem. Neddy’s issues that

This leads the character to seek help and find a better way of living. This straight forward approach used by Matthew Weiner, while great for a screen, might have been lost when described realistically in a novel, however accurate the story might be. John Cheever, the writer of “The Swimmer” opens the doors of interpretation with his character Neddy Merrill and his similar life to Don Draper. However, Neddy Merrill stops short of the last step of ever realizing that he has a problem only to be faced with the consequences of his actions in the end. Neddy’s alcoholic behavior tends to allow him to be more open with people. During his swim across the county, Neddy stops and takes a drink from his friend and “stopped to kiss eight or ten other women and shake the hands of as many men” thus opening up his emotional spectrum (Cheever 2364). This open expression of emotion was slightly unnatural compared to the model male figure. In the words of Henry David Thoreau, “Men lead lives of quiet desperation,” (Bartleby). The cultural norm was to lack any emotional expression in order to look and feel stoic. This strange need to be considered manly and stoic is juxtaposed with the character’s name, Neddy. While he may have the urge to let go of the quiet and strong male characteristics, Neddy chooses to continue to go by a youthful nickname instead of allowing his name to change and age with