On Neddy Merril’s Crisis of Masculinity in The Swimmer

Abstract

The Swimmer is one of John Cheever’s best known stories. It presents the classic theme of quest and journey. This paper focuses on the protagonist Neddy’s swimming journey, probes into his intense longing for masculinity, scrutinizes the nature and causes of his masculinity crisis relating to the postwar conceptions of class, gender and patriarchy norms combined with structural economic changes and the increasing autonomy of women, and reveals Cheever’s deep concern about white middle class male’s dilemma so as to offer some inspiration for resolving modern spiritual crisis.