Tommy Wilhelm's Deception of RealitySaul Bellow's Seize the Day symbolizes the complexity of American culture in the 1950s. World War II, America experiences rapid economic growth. Additionally, America is experiencing the early stages of the Cold War with the Soviet Union. In Seize the Day, Bellow uses setting, characters, and images to symbolize the psychological detachment of Americans during the corresponding period. In Seize the Day, Tommy Wilhelm is portrayed as a middle-aged man living in New York. Tommy Wilhelm moves to New York after being fired from his sales job and divorced from his wife. Faced with a financial dilemma, Wilhelm decides to invest in the stock market with Dr. Tamkin. Dr. Tamkin is revealed to be a fraudulent character after losing all of Wilhelm's money and disappearing. Despite numerous failures, Wilhelm makes one last attempt to ask his father for help. After being denied financial help from his father, Tommy gets a revitalizing insight into the meaning of life at a stranger's funeral. New York City is the perfect setting to symbolize the psychological state of mind of 1950s America. Bellow describes the setting of New York City as "the great, great crowd, the exhausting current of millions of all races and all kinds pouring out, crowding together, of all ages, of all geniuses…” (111). Bellow describes New York City as a chaotic image symbolizing the lost state of Tommy Wilhelm. According to Gilbert M. Porter, "the setting and present tense form the framework that contains Wilhelm's reflections on past time and its effects on his present situation" (107). Through Wilhelm's gaze, we can imagine the detachment he experiences...... middle of paper ......lm with a hippopotamus to suggest another metaphor. Wilhelm is indirectly compared to the semi-aquatic mammal to emphasize Porter's “drowning man” (105). The symbol of water continues to dominate the imagery of Seize the Day at different levels of consciousness. Bellow's Seize the Day is a work of fiction that represents the perspective of the modern American during the corresponding time period. Like Hemingway’s “Lost Generation,” World War II left the American people feeling disconnected from humanity. Through Tommy Wilhelm's protagonist, we can see the connection between failure and society. Also, through the character of Wilhelm, we can see a false conception of destiny. Wilhelm realizes that correcting external problems requires direct internal fixation. Through the tears of the protagonist, Bellow gives hope to the reader.