A Perfect Day for Bananafish

by

J. D. Salinger

A Perfect Day for Bananafish Symbols

Seymour’s Bathrobe

Near the beginning of the story, Muriel complains to her mother that Seymour refuses to take his bathrobe off, which she flippantly attributes to him wanting to hide his pale complexion. However, his bizarre attachment…

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Feet

In the story, feet symbolize the idea that there’s no such thing as pure, uncorrupted innocence. The first time feet appear in the story is when Sybil, a young girl around four or five…

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Bananafish

The titular bananafish—a kind of fish that Seymour makes up to entertain Sybil—has two layers of symbolic significance: the story that Seymour tells about the fish is a metaphor for the destruction caused by…

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