The short story, “The Swimmer” is one of Cheever’s well-known works. The story depicts the life of individuals living in the suburbs as they discover the magnificence and sadness of individuals living in the chaos of an apparently peaceful American suburb. “The Swimmer” is a combination of myth and realism as Neddy Merrill attempts to swim eight miles in the pools at Westchester County. A closer analysis of the story suggests that the “pool” and the alcohol form a significant aspect of Neddy’s life and the changes that occur. The reference to Neddy swimming in pools against the free flowing rivers or sea suggests that the protagonist faces some amount of confinement in his life. In essence, the enclosed pool symbolizes Neddy’s enclosed life. His friends are in his life and he “swims with them,” however, the changes in his life are harsh. There is no doubt that Neddy’s encounter on the Route 24 and in the public pool reflects his fall from grace. The former athlete attempts to recapture his lost youth with this physical attempt. The choices that Ned makes ultimately changed his life. The reader recognizes the blatant changes that Ned goes through mentally, and sees that individuals are responsible for their destiny in many ways. Cheever experiments a different narrative style as the story appears to be realistic at a first reading, but goes deeper as the reader gets into the disordered mind of the central character.
Cheever begins the story with the couples relaxing around a pool in a suburban backyard. They reflect on their actions at the party the previous night and show how individuals are responsible for their lives. The protagonist, Ned, first appears as an affluent, middle-aged, young citizen in the suburbs. He attempts to rise above the complacent way he lives his life. His decides to swim home across fifteen pools to the south of his destination. Cheever takes the reader on an adventure as Ned goes to different pools. The reader sees the impact of each experience on Ned’s life. Clearly, he could stop the adventure at any point, but he reinforces that he is responsible for his tragic end. Ned’s exhilaration and then, his ensuing exhaustion creates a roller coaster of emotions in the readers as the reader sees the changes in the tone and action of the story. The reader sees the changes in Ned as he takes on each situation. As the story progresses, the days turn colder and darker. The bizarre encounters with the neighbors lead to the once-vibrant Neddy being transformed into an older and confused man. One could say that Ned’s journey is an indication of the typical struggles of mid-life crisis. Slowly, Ned realizes that his marriage as well as his relationships with those around him is a lie. As the story closes, the reader has no doubt that Ned’s life changed considerably. The symbolic meaning of the swim is clear as it represents the apathy, ignorance, an inability of people as they seek answers to the reality of their lives.
One may argue that the plot is largely about the impact of alcohol consumption, the events suggests that the meaning of the story is deeper. As Neddy goes through the proverbial swimming pools, the reader realizes that Neddy is the master of his destiny. Neddy’s lack of clothing suggests an open or carefree manner in which he once lived. He says “the only maps and charts he had to go by were remembered or imaginary,” (Cheever, p.2). At the start of the journey, he has very little remorse for the way he dresses, but as he goes through his uncharted “life” he realizes that his life is not what he thought. One sees Neddy’s life as one that has many changes in a short time. First, he has a number of friends who appear to care for him as he enjoys his wealth. As he moves through his life and his money depletes, Neddy realizes that the empty mirrors reflect the loss of wealth and an end to the life he knows. The pools are symbolic to the way lives his life. The fact that he swims through life suggests that Neddy did not give much thought to the events in his life. In fact, the reader realizes that Neddy does not recall much of the details of his life mainly because he had not paid much attention to the important events in his life. The events surrounding the Lindleys are foggy and he notes “the memory was unclear,” (Cheever, p.5). The journey to his “home” plots the events in Neddy’s life. He names the stream “Lucinda” after his wife as she represents the final disappointment in his life. The goal of his swim centers on going “home,” but he finds that even his wife deserts him in the end. It is ironic that Neddy leaves his wife at the start of the story, and she leaves him at the end of the story. Nonetheless, the reader learns that Neddy’s life is one of struggles and Lucinda is not the only one who leaves in the end.
James Frye notes “from the very moment that his trek begins, Neddy isolates himself from the people he meets,” (Frye, p.2). One could say that if he formulated friendships with depth and stability, then the treatment he receives from those around him would be different. The strain in his relationships spreads to his wife as he tells her “I’m swimming home,” (Cheever, p.2), As a consequence, Neddy is responsible for the treatment he receives as he swims home. Similarly, Wilhite notes that “Cheever introduces a dialectic relationship between physical spaces and their representations, and this interplay between the physical and the cartographic, the real and the imagined, ripples through the narrative,” (Wilhite, p.3). The reader sees just as Neddy cannot accept the smell of wood burning, the falling leaves, or the early darkness as a part of the passing of time, so does he misreads the changes in his friends. Mrs. Halloran first shares the changes in Neddy’s financial decline as she says “we’ve been terribly sorry to hear about your misfortunes,” (Cheever, p.8). Still, shows his lack of perception or awareness as he does not accept her remarks as truthful. This lack of acceptance tells the reader that Neddy lived his life in denial.
In concluding, the changes in Neddy’s character come with his actions. His former carefree way of drinking and enjoying his life adds to the lack of perception that he has of the real world. He takes a proverbial swim to show that he idly passes through life and is not aware of the negative events that changed his life. The author uses the pool figuratively to show that Neddy lives a sheltered life for the most part. Nevertheless, this sheltered life comes under threat and scrutiny when he exposes himself to ridicule at the public pool and on Route 24. The readers see some remorse in Neddy’s character in these instances as the tone changes and the readers realize that Neddy shows concern about the treatment he receives here. The concern is short-lived when he goes back to the constancy of his life and friends. Here, Neddy could have changed his ways as the pools he now faces run dry and the storm threatens to change his life. However, Neddy’s self-assurance allows him to “swim” through his disappointments as he heads home. The unavoidable disappointment comes when he realizes that so much time had passed and his wife and child leave. Mankind is the master of his destiny. Neddy choose to live a life that was rich in entertainment and forget the values of relationships. He could have changed and become more accepting of those he knew which would ultimately make his “swim” bearable.
Works Cited
Cheever, John “The Swimmer” Internet Versions Viewed at
< http://202.121.96.130/Download/20091207184417_734640623434.pdf> Accessed October 19, 2014
Frye Jameses (n.d) “Themes from ‘The Swimmer’ and ‘The Wrysons’” Viewed at
< http://www.sjsu.edu/theatrearts/Cheever%20Packet.pdf> Accessed October 19, 2014
Wilhite, Keith. "John Cheever's Shady Hill, or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The
Suburbs." Studies in American Fiction 34.2 (2006): 215-240. http://hdl.handle.net/2047/d10016661
