In "The Swimmer" and "The Purloined Letter," writers Cheever and Poe, respectively, employ foreshadowing before a significant plotline revelation. Their vastly unique applications of this literary device create heightened feelings of suspense, yet at the same time make the revelations predictable. "The Swimmer" subtly doles out it foreshadowing in the form of minute environmental clues that slowly drag the reader away from light comedy into a nightmarishly believable revelation. "The Purloined Letter" provides an obvious foreshadowing in the beginning, so that when arriving at the revelation readers can only chuckle at themselves for not seeing it coming.
Early in "The Swimmer" Neddy establishes that the name of the "quasi- subterranean stream that [curves] across the country" is Lucinda (Cheever 174). As keen readers will observe, the river symbolizes the person behind its namesake and by extension, the pools that Neddy swims in throughout his journey represent his relationship with his wife. For this reason, the dried up pool at the Welcher's house is one of the many environmental clues that foreshadow the weakening relationship with his wife. After he moves on from the Welcher residence, he arrives at the Halloran's where Mrs. Halloran again raises our suspicion of Neddy's deteriorating family life when she says, "Why we heard that you'd sold your house and that your poor children ." (Cheever 178). By this juncture, it becomes apparent to readers that Neddy's social welfare is on the decline. In the last paragraph of the narrative, Cheever reveals that Neddy truly loses his family and wealth. Even though this revelation pushes the envelope between realism and fantasy; readers are not as shocked as Neddy because the third person narration throughout the story grants the ability to decipher the clues leading up to this tragedy.
