Essay
Willy Ben Chen
Essay.docx1
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“The Summer”
“The Summer” is one of the stories from John Cheever for any literature lover to read. The author of the short story has created a fictional character, Neddy Merril, that determines the desire to pursue his career of swimming across all the pools within the country as he travelled home (Cheever et al., 2010). The story takes a different direction after a storm barrels through and chill falls. Similarly, The climate change results in a darker side across the suburban community that had faced the challenge of overlooking the gods. “The Summer” is a rich short story where the application of various themes such as delusion, aging, suburban emptiness, appearance vs. reality, and the inevitable passage of time have been used to enlighten the society. Therefore, the theme in “The Summer” will be also addressed as depicted by John Cheever.
The first theme is the delusion that is explored throughout the story. The character of Neddy has been used by John Cheever to explain the theme. The author explored the lifestyle and the false image of Neddy to establish the theme of delusion. Neddy describes himself as a man living in paradise where he states, “prosperous men and women gathered by…waters.” Similarly, there is clear evidence of denial by the main character Neddy where he denies his aging process for numerous other unpleasant issues. Neddy considers himself a “legendary figure” at the beginning of the story (Cheever et al., 2010). Additionally, Neddy’s character is depicted as a brave explorer who is interested in navigating in new territory. Initially, the friends of Neddy support his self-image. Notably, the friends of Neddy during the Bunkers’ party describe him as a hero.
At first, when he approaches the party, the friends welcome him as a conquering hero. The author describes how the men heartily shook Neddy’s hand, and women welcomed him through kisses. However, the character of Neddy’s friends changes, and they become hostile to him. The process of change in the character of the friends exposes the falseness Neddy had in his image. Neddy does realize the difference, but not until he attends a party, and his friends deny him the previous warm welcome he was receiving. After the friends realized that he had deluded himself from what he was actually as a man, the act occurred. The author describes a troubled, foolish man with a lot of emptiness as opposed to a brave explorer as he branded himself. Neddy realizes his life’s reality, which opens his eyes to understand that he is getting old. Finally, he eliminates the illusion which introduces him to the desperate financial condition after being abandoned by his wife and the children.
The second theme is aging, which is developed through the decline of Neddy’s physical image in nature. John Cheever introduces Neddy as a youthful, vibrant creature despite been in his middle age. The story’s progression introduces a man growing old, and in the end the author describes Neddy as a tired, older man. Similarly, the changes in age are depicted through the fluctuating swimming style of Neddy. In the earlier stages of “The Summer,” Neddy dives boldly into the water a describes himself having an “inexplicable contempt for men who did not hurl themselves into the pool” (Cheever et al., 2010). On arriving at Hallorans, his swimming power had diminished to the extent that he is unable to swim in their swimming pools. The aging process is essential, and it is visible to the end of the story where Neddy resorts to “a hobbled sidestroke,” in one of the pools. On reaching home, Neddy is described as “stooped. Holding on to the gatepost for support.” Changes in Neddy’s surroundings depict an aging process among the men. Notably, the stars that appear in the sky is a depiction of natural evolution from summer to fall. Similarly, towards the end of the narrative, Neddy observes autumnal constellations having replaced constellations that occur in summer. There is evidence that Neddy’s aging process has a relationship with the progression of nature.
The third theme that is evident throughout the story is suburban emptiness. Cheever conveys the theme through the relationship, setting, and Neddy’s concept of swimming home. The author reveals that the majority of individuals living in affluent suburbs may utilize their time in lounging, getting drunk, and giving parties. The author indicates that suburban behavior is evident among the local priest, who is very engaged in the activities to the point that he has challenges putting on the cassock. Therefore, the priest who is considered as a role model to majority in the society has also adopted the emptiness lifestyle. The theme is a depiction that suburban emptiness is extended to numerous aspects of daily life.
Additionally, the relationship between Neddy and his friends establishes a superficial emptiness quality. Notably, when Neddy is financially stable, the friends welcome him to their parties and takes him as a conqueror and hero. On the other side, when he is faced with financial challenges, even close friends such as Shirley, Adams, and Grace Biswanger abandon him. It is evident from Neddy’s relation and the friends that he does not have any close friends. Nevertheless, Neddy’s idea to swim back home via the backyard pool is something that people cannot take as a good thing to do. As a way to fulfil Neddy’s empty life, he thinks on a new challenge to undertake, and he glorifies the idea. At the end of the narrative, where Neddy realizes that his house was abandoned, he understands his emptiness and the empty life he has spent.
The fourth theme of “The Summer,” is appearance vs. reality of the characters. Despite the financial well-being depicted by friends of Neddy, their conditions are not hopeful and happy. The different parties that the friends undertook reveals the emptiness of contemporary society in America. Similarly, the parties held by the group are a depiction of the hypocrisy and meaningless of the life lived by the middle and upper classes. Notably, Neddy tries to depict the importance of recapturing his youthful swimming practice back home, which the audience can describe as bizarre and non-essential. There is also an allusion in the manner wealth is depicted as the majority of the Neddy’s friend indicate that richness is associated with happiness.
The last theme is the inevitable passage of time. Neddy’s journey to the home through the neighbourhood’s pools turns out to be a long journey for many years. The journey depicts that passage of time cannot be escaped despite the ignorance that people may have on the issue. Cheever reveals that the main character, “Neddy,” is a master of denial who does not believe that he is getting old. At the beginning of the narrative, Neddy is said to be “far from young,” but he works hard to act as a young man (Cheever et al., 2010).
Notably, he is seen sliding down a pool through diving headlong. For example, the long afternoon spent in the Westerhazys’ pool is a good depiction of timeless. The example reveals the many other afternoons that groups of people spend doing non-productive activities. The concept devised by Neddy of swimming back home is an indication of events that results in wastage of time. During the journey of Neddy, there is evidence of the inevitable passage of time circled numerous activities. During the journey, time is passing far much quicker than Neddy establishes. The change in color of the leaves from green to yellow and red is a depiction of change in time.
Works Cited
Cheever, John, Meryl Streep, Edward Herrmann, Blythe Danner, George Plimpton, and Peter Gallagher. 2010. The John Cheever Audio Collection.
http://airshipdaily.com/blog/05272014-john-cheever-free-stories
