"You just keep your eyes open for any bananafish. This is a perfect day for bananafish." 

-Seymour Glass

The short story "A Perfect Day For Bananafish" is J.D. Salinger's first published work concerning the fictitious Glass family, and introduces a collection of philosophical anecdotes entitled "Nine Stories."  Throughout Salinger's subsequent writings, the reoccurring subject of the Glass family, an upper class family of eight that live in New York City, provides some of his most poignant and genuine writing. "A Perfect Day For Bananafish" is no exception, with Salinger's vivid descriptions, unique symbolism and biting dialogue saturating the story.

___________________________________________

The foreboding opening scene of "Bananafish" takes place in a Floridian hotel with Seymour Glass' wife Muriel on the telephone with her mother discussing the mental stability of Seymour. A perfect song for this scene would be "Wild Is the Wind" by Nina Simone. This haunting song complements the setting of the hotel room; one can almost hear a scratchy record of Nina Simone's crooning voice playing in the background. As Muriel's mother criticizes Seymour and warns of an impending mental collapse, Muriel consistently defends him, ignoring her mother's plea to come home. The song fosters an atmosphere that is pregnant with tension, a tension fraught with love and the fleeting capacity of life - a feeling paralleled in the text.

Like a leaf clings to a tree

Oh my darling, cling to me

For we're creatures of the wind

And wild is the wind.

___________________________________________

Next, the story shifts to the beach outside the hotel. A young girl named Sybil Carpenter is talking to her mother while getting sunscreen applied to her back. I feel that the song "Gobbledigook" by Sigur Ros would enhance the mood, and flow well with the scene. Sybil is told to run off and play on the beach, a typical child's idea of fun; the song is reflective of this childhood experience. The upbeat nature of the song perfectly complements Sybil's lively walk up the beach. The song is written and sung in Icelandic, but some of the translated lyrics are very applicable:

Wind in the hair - ooh ooh

Wind in the hair - ooh ooh

You blow sand in eyes, tears

Again, the third line here brings beach imagery to mind, while the previous two lines complement the image of a young girl running down the beach on a brisk day. The abrupt musical end of the song suits the end of the text scene, with Sybil breaking into an "oblique run" that "stop[s] short" when she encounter Seymour lying in the sand.

___________________________________________

As Sybil runs down the beach, she encounters her friend, Seymour Glass. The song "Horchata" by Vampire Weekend would be an excellent song to start at the moment Sybil stops in front of Seymour. "Horchata" embodies the innocence that Seymour is fascinated with in Sybil, while the upbeat nature of the song also complements the light and airy mood of the text - even the second line of the verse reminisces a seashore setting.

Winter's cold is too much to handle

Pincher crabs that pinch at my sandals

Here comes a feeling you thought you'd forgotten

Chairs to sit and sidewalks to walk on

Ooh you had it but oh no you lost it

Lookin back you shouldn't have fought it. 

The third line parallels Sybil's innocence that Seymour longs for. Seymour is reminded of childhood blamelessness with his encounter of Sybil. A feeling a nostalgia permeates the conversation that whimsically floats from the color of their bathing suits to playing the piano with Sharon Lipschultz. In a similar manner, the song plays on the theme of nostalgia with the line, "Lookin back you shouldn't have fought it." This scene is a prelude to the symbolic ocean swimming excursion coming up next, where Seymour and Sybil hunt for bananafish.

___________________________________________

Once Sybil and Seymour dive into the ocean and begin swimming together, the tone of the story takes another dramatic shift. This thematic change, from wistful conversation to war-torn analogy, marks the necessity for a more somber and reflective track. Consequently, the next song on the soundtrack is "Harry Patch (In Memory Of)" by Radiohead.

I am the only one that got through

The others died where ever they fell

It was an ambush

They came up from all sides

Give your leaders each a gun and then let them fight it out themselves

I’ve seen devils coming up from the ground

I’ve seen hell upon this earth

The next will be chemical but they will never learn

While swimming, Seymour tells Sybil to be on the lookout for "bananafish." Salinger creates a metaphor that uses Seymour's "bananafish" as a symbol for soldiers who "swim into a hole" (or war) "behave like pigs...and eat as many as seventy-eight bananas." Eating bananas is symbolic for killing in combat, and according to Salinger, leads to "banana fever" or what modern medicine would call PTSD - a condition which WWII veteran Seymour was suffering a socially debilitating case of. Radiohead's "Harry Patch" is a soaring orchestral piece dedicated to the memory of Britain's last WWI veteran, Harry Patch. It sounds deceptively calm, but a closer listen unveils a more disturbing and mournful tone - similar to guitarist Jonny Greenwood's There Will Be Blood composition. The lyrics reminisce on war, a "hell upon this earth." Both Seymour and the Radiohead song express very similar ideas about war and its damaging consequences. 

___________________________________________

After his swim and discussion in the ocean with Sybil, Seymour swiftly gets out of the water and treks up the hotel. The song "Little Motel" by Modest Mouse is a perfect companion to Mr. Glass' exit from the sea and elevator ride up to the 5th floor.

I hope that you like it in your little motel

And I hope that the suite sleeps and suits you well

Well I can see it as time and a sight through smell

That's why it's nice to be yourself

Because that's what I'm waiting for

That's what I'm waiting for...

"Little Motel" is an incredibly moving song that completely embodies Seymour's final moments. In the elevator to get up to his room, Seymour begins to lose control and confronts a woman, accusing her of being "a God-damned sneak" by staring at his feet. The forboding lyrics and the ominous music seem to almost foreshadow an impending disaster, especially the constantly repeated lyric, "That's what I'm waiting for." As the song builds with tension in junction with Seymour's walk and elevator ride, Seymour himself is undergoing a rapid and pressurizing deterioration.

The two lines "I hope that you like it in your little motel; And I hope that the suite sleeps and suits you well" is very ambiguous, especially in context with the rest of the song. It seems to fit in just perfectly with the timing of the story - Seymour's walk through the hotel and into the elevator. I also feel that the song takes on a more symbolic meaning: "I hope that you like it in your little motel, and I hope that the suite sleeps and suits you well." I feel that the "motel" could be symbolic for a coffin, with the song dwelling on death and a person's complacency with it. Modest Mouse seems to capture the moment right before Seymour's death where he knows exactly what is going to happen.

___________________________________________

The final song in my playlist needs no introduction: "How To Disappear Completely" by Radiohead. Perhaps their greatest song, on perhaps their greatest album, this song undoubtedly complements the final mood of the text. 

That there, that's not me

I go where I please

I walk through walls

I float down the Liffey

I'm not here

This isn't happening

I'm not here, I'm not here

In a little while

I'll be gone

The moment's already passed

Yeah, It's gone

In my soundtrack, this song would begin to play the moment the elevator doors open on the fifth floor of the hotel. Seymour walks to his room, looks at his sleeping wife Muriel on one of the twin beds, removes a pistol from his luggage, cocks it, and fires "a bullet through his right temple." The lyrics of "Disappear," especially "I'm not here, This isn't happening" embody a feeling of agonizing disassociation that Seymour is definitely suffering from.

Thom Yorke's falsetto vocals foster an eerie atmosphere that is only enhanced by the beautiful string work in the song. The paralyzing lines "In a little while, I'll be gone" sadly align themselves perfectly with Seymour's death. From the flurrying strings, and the mournful lyrics, Radiohead's "How To Disappear Completely" ends "Bananafish" on an appropriately somber note.