Personal Development in a Gilded, Consumerist Society: Seize the Day, Chapters III - V

Like Oedipa Maas in The Crying of Lot 49, Tommy Wilhelm in Seize the Day undergoes a personal development which is far more controversial and significant than the plot of the novel per say. This progressive improvement in behavior and analytical capacities in Wilhelm’s life changes dramatically from chapter to chapter. For example, in Chapter Three, this character sees his existence as something miserable and laments his situation in life. “‘Oh, Dad, Dad, what a hole I’m in!’ said Wilhelm in utter misery… Wilhelm took hold of his broad throat with brown-stained fingers and bitten nails and began to choke himself… neither can you and I be compared, because you, Dad, were a success. And a success – is a success. I never made a success.” (pgs. 45, 48). The main character of the novel expresses pity for himself in the way he acts and talks. He defines himself as a failure in life who never managed to accomplish anything worthwhile. In addition to this, Bellow makes sure that Wilhelm’s appearance remains devastated and wretched. The connotation of the words “brown-stained fingers” and “bitten nails” not only symbolizes Wilhelm’s anti-hygienic customs, but also represents this character’s downcast view of himself. The lack of care for his physical appearance implies that Wilhelm has become completely indifferent to his thoughts and emotions as well.

Wilhelm’s rational capacity and mental state show a significant improvement in the next chapter:
“…he received a suggestion from some remote element in his thoughts that the business of life, the real business – to carry his peculiar burden, to feel shame and impotence, to taste these quelled tears – the only important business, the highest business was being done. Maybe the making of mistakes expressed the very purpose of his life and the essence of his being here.” (p. 52).
Wilhelm ceased to feel pity for himself by reflecting about the purpose of life and our existence here on Earth. Misery was not a burden any more, but rather a necessity. Feeling depressed and insignificant, as Wilhelm now reflected, is a person’s sole goal and purpose while his existence on the planet. According to this philosophy, Wilhelm’s misfortunes were not caused by his impotence and failures, but by his necessity to fulfill “the business of life.”

Following Tamkin’s advise to focus on the present and “Seize the day.” (p. 62), Wilhelm proceeded to take advantage of the opportunities life presented him with. Chapter Five was inaugurated with Wilhelm’s conviction to redress the mistakes he had committed in life. “He believed that he must, that he could and would recover the good things, the happy things, the easy tranquil things of life. He had made mistakes, but he could overlook these.” (p. 74). By adopting a totally different attitude that related accordingly to the title of the work, Tommy Wilhelm began to take advantage of the present situations life offered him. He began taking an active role in every situation that concerned him, for example the price of lard and his investments on this product. Thus, the character began to “seize the day,” take advantage of every opportunity, learn something meaningful from every occurrence, and struggle in order to achieve “the best possible outcome” out of the present situation.

Apart from illustrating the change the character of Wilhelm underwent, Seize the Day also criticizes the consumerist, materialistic world of the 1950’s. “‘They burn up the world – oil, coal, wood, metal, and soil, and suck even the air and sky. They consume, and they give back no benefit. A man like you, humble for life, who wants to feel and live, has trouble – not wanting.’” (p. 77). Money and corruption is mentioned everywhere. Even Wilhelm himself, who despises money and criticizes his father for the value he places on wealth, is forced to live his life at mercy of the stock market and the changes in the prices of lard and rye. Bellow is trying to promote a society in which abstract, intangible feelings, not material goods, are the basis to become someone important and significant in life. “‘If thou cans not love, what art thou?’… ‘What art thou?’ Nothing. That’s the answer.” (p. 66). Love is the purest of all emotions and the one which demands the most sacrifice as well; however, sorrow, not love, is the feeling humans depend upon in life:
“Come then, Sorrow!
Sweetest Sorrow!
Like an own babe I nurse thee on my breast!
I thought to leave thee,
And deceive thee,
But now of all the world I love thee best.” (pgs. 85-86).
This poem illustrates a person’s desperate want of sorrow. By using the adjective “sweetest,” the author praises and glorifies this emotion by making it more likeable than all the rest. Like a babe, sorrow is naturally attached and dependent on oneself. It relies on an individual to nurse him and keep him alive within him. Even though it sometimes becomes a burden for us in life and sparks the wish to “leave” and “deceive” it, sorrow becomes a person’s best friend and most devoted love. By behaving as such, this emotion assumes the role of staying with us permanently. Since it is impossible to get rid of it, it is easier to deal with it as something we desire rather than despise. Sorrow becomes part of our lives. The constant feeling of sorrow, distress, and misery only leaves room in our minds for longing. Longing, as seen with Wilhelm, materializes itself into actions that we perform in life in order to retrieve a state of stability and security; henceforth, sorrow is a permanent emotion that drives our behavior and initiative to succeed and “seize the day.”