The American writer James A. Baldwin once said: "People are trapped in history, and history is trapped in them" (BrainyQuote). It is usually said to leave the past behind. For some it is difficult to do this. Sometimes the effects of one's past linger, making an "ordinary" future seem impossible. JD Salinger, a World War II veteran, suffered from persistent mental illness after his return from the war. He released "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" just three years later. Salinger's post-war personal struggle is evident in the story's theme: loneliness and uncertainty in following a difficult situation. The story's main character, Seymour, and Salinger share the burden of feeling marginalized and alone upon returning from the war. Both the author and the character he created seek the innocence lost in war. Seymour, in particular, seems to see it in the children's youth. “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” is set after World War II in a beach town in Florida, USA. To summarize, Seymour, a clearly disturbed war veteran, took his wife to the beach where the two vacationed before the war. On the beach, Seymour meets and becomes fascinated by Sybil, a little girl he enlists to help him search for a made-up "banana fish." “Salinger appears to have an intrinsic understanding of dramatic technique, and is able to integrate it into his short story writing” (Shurman). The structure of the story is similar to the flow of a play with timely dialogue and moments of escalating intensity. In the short story “A Perfect Day for Bananafish,” J.D. Salinger effectively develops the themes of loneliness, uncertainty, and grief in a difficult situation using symbolism, foreshadowing, and humor. As the story unfolds,… in the center of the card… is stuck in the hole. People, like Seymour, create illusions and imaginary images to relieve tension and emotional suffering. It seems that the life of the banana fish before swimming in the hole symbolizes Seymour's life before the war; and once in the hole, his life after the war. Seymour then explains that all the banana fish will die: “Well, they get banana fever. It's a terrible disease'” (Salinger 323). The banana fish is Seymour and the terrible disease he has is a metaphor for the war in which he loses his youth and innocence. William Wiegand attempts to 'solve' the riddle of Seymour's death when he claims that Seymour is 'himself a banana fish' who has 'become so sated with sensation that he can no longer swim in society'” (Lane). "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" refers to Seymour's idea of ​​his day, his internal illness, and his ultimate death.