Miss Dent
Cheever occasionally infuses symbolism into the names of his characters. The titular couple of “The Wrysons” for example is symbolic foreshadowing of the tone of the narrative itself which is one of the most wryly humorous in Cheever’s canon. One of his most symbolic names is the one chosen for the revenge-minded jilted secretary in “The Five-Forty-Eight.” Miss Dent is majestically subtle in its symbolism of the damaged young woman who transforms from catatonia to stalker in this satisfying tale of a victim of sexual abuse turning the tables on the businessman who comes to regret his collision with her fragile psyche.
The Swimming Pool
Perhaps the most robust symbol in Cheever’s collection of short fiction is backyard mainstay of affluent suburbia which inspires the tile of “The Swimmer.” By the middle of the 20th century the in-ground swimming pool had transformed from the ultimate symbol of over-the-top wealth into a symbol of upper middle class success. In some neighborhoods, a backyard pool was the defining difference between attainment of the American Dream and the continuing struggle. Yet within the context of the “The Swimmer” itself, emptiness of symbols is put on tragic display. The story is a strong reminder that a symbol of thing is not exactly the same as the thing itself.
The Enormous Radio
The brand new radio which replaces the broken-down older model in one of Cheever’s most popular stories does more than just transmit signals from nearly radio towers; the transmission is far more local. The new radio has more switches and dials and is notably uglier features a disturbing green light to distinguish it from the old one, but other than that there is no physical indication of its special ability. The new radio which allows a couple to eavesdrop on the conversations of neighbors in the same building can be a symbol for just about any theme related to voyeurism, including the very act of a reader peeping on the private lives of the story itself. Because the new radio specifically replace the older model, however, the symbolism of the paranoid threat of technology taking over people’s lives has become far richer.
Shady Hill
Shady Hill. The name itself his suggestive of the approach that Cheever takes place to suburbia. He became famous for writing about this development in the means and methodology of community that wasn’t quite urban and wasn’t quite rural long before it became almost a genre of its own. Shady Hill is a symbol of the rise above the norm that being able to live in a suburban community lent one in the middle of the 20th century while also indicating that everything going on there was not quite as bright and shiny as it may have seemed to outsiders aching to get in.
Alcohol
Liquor flows freely throughout the literature of Cheever and is a reflection of the author’s own obsessions and demons; he battled alcoholism while writing these stories contained here. The presence of alcohol is not always the same, however. Some of his characters are irredeemable drunks while many other are just social drinkers. The persistence of spirits in the stories of struggles in suburbia has the effect of engendering alcohol with a generously flexible symbolic importance. Whether engaged to excess as a tool for escape or utilized for the purpose of loosening inhibitions in the moment, the effects of consumption seems to be inextricably tied to surviving the shadier neighborhoods of suburbia.
