John Cheever's The Swimmer begins at Helen and Donald Westerhazy's swimming pool when Neddy Merrill makes the decision to walk eight miles home while swimming in a series of pools he calls the "Lucinda River" (297) and walks when he cannot swim. On his way home, he stops at the houses of fourteen old friends and has a drink before moving on if possible. By the end of Neddy's journey, he is exhausted and realizes that he has lost not only his home but also his wife and daughters, as well as his so-called friends and even a mistress. Cheever suggests that alcoholism is a destruction of life through the use of symbolism, imagery, and characterization. Throughout the story, Cheever's character Neddy describes the different colors of each pool. Starting with the Westerhazys, their pool is “pale green.” His first stop, after deciding on his adventure, is at the “sapphire-colored waters” of the Bunkers (298). A few pools later, he encounters the Welcher pool where “he found their pool to be dry” (300). The next waters described are “darkness” and “opaque gold” (301). The last one Neddy meets has “a wintry glow” (303). The narrator describes Neddy as “a thin man – he seemed to have the peculiar thinness of youth… far from being young…” (297). He had already started drinking at Westerhazy, and the description of his youth describes the first effects of alcohol, as if he could accomplish anything he set his mind to. The sapphire water makes the Bunkers seem well-off and Neddy can help himself to their bar. When he arrives at the Welchers' house, he discovers that they have packed up and emptied their swimming pool. This hints at a look at reality where alcohol cures nothing and foreshadows that ... middle of paper ... membership made him wonder how much time had actually passed. His drinking problem is such that he no longer remembers important things that are difficult to forget, such as the loss of his money, his house, his wife and his children. Neddy's life took a downward spiral because of his drinking problem. Alcohol took over his life and became his main focus. John Cheever foreshadowed Neddy's misfortune through the use of symbolism, imagery, and characterization. Unfortunately once again for Neddy Merrill, he only realizes his dilemma after he has already lost everything he owns. Works Cited Cheever, John. “The swimmer”. Literature and the writing process. Ed. Elizabeth Mahan, Susan X Day and Robert Funk. 6th ed. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice, 2003. 297-304. Scott-Kemmis, Judy. “The color gold.” Reinforced by color. Np, and Web. March 4. 2014.