Materialism Is The Only Form Of Distraction From True Bliss

â€Å"Materialism is the only form of distraction from true bliss.†- Douglas Horton. At the beginning of â€Å"A Perfect Day for Bananafish†, J.D. Salinger concentrates on the deranged Seymour Glass, who, after being released from the Army hospital, isolates himself from blinded consumers. Seymour returns to his family after World War II, only to become aware of the nauseating phoniness of the world. Seymour attempts to rid his family of the superficial American dream with â€Å"The trees. That business with the window. Those horrible things he [Seymour] said to Granny about her plans for passing away. What he did with all those lovely pictures from Bermuda—everything’†, but this proves futile as he is just considered insane. Muriel, Seymour’s wife,†¦show more content†¦All those whom Seymour knows--Muriel and her family, the psychiatrist, and Sybil’s mother-- reflect the oppressive adult world where true value is lost. On th e contrary, the innocence and value is still visible and pure within children. Salinger uses a young Sybil to symbolize the human condition for Seymour. By speaking with Sybil, Seymour reconnects to the innocent, childlike state, but this is short lived for when she leaves him, he is forced to submerge himself back into Muriel’s superficial life. Though briefly bringing Seymour hope and happiness, Sybil already resembles the tarnishing spirit of man after she returns to the ‘real world’ of superficial paradise from the imaginative dream Seymour and her have established: â€Å"‘Goodbye,’ said Sybil, and ran without regret in the direction of the hotel† (Salinger 9). Salinger uses Sybil in reference to Greek mythology â€Å"like the sibyls of old, she is the unconscious oracle through whom prophecy is revealed, the instrument of truth; what she reveals to Seymour is the finality of that unbridgeable gap between human aspiration and human possib ility. Seymour’s suicide is his summing up† (Lane). In the end, Seymour’s search for opportunity and innocence proves futile and his final attempt for true bliss or nirvana imminent. Salinger often associates the phoniness of adulthood and materialism with the constant complication of true communication. For the motif ofShow MoreRelatedTaoism Buddhism2406 Words   |  10 Pagesare the two great philosophical and religious traditions that originated in China. Taoism began the sixth century BCE. Buddhism came to China from India around the second century of the Common Era. These two religions have shaped Chinese life and thought for nearly twenty-five hundred years. One dominant concept in Taoism and Buddhism is the belief in some form of reincarnation. 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