In Seize the Day, Bellow deals with the time-worn dilemma of the desperately isolated and profoundly lonely individual, caused by society's aggressiveness and shortcomings of his character, at the beginning of the story, Tommy finds himself in debt to his wife and the Hotel. Forty-three years old, huge, bear-like, overemotional and highly dependent, he is trapped in a heartless world. In this world there is no cure and there is no true communication between men. People talk to each other, do business, pass the time of the day, but somehow they do so only superficially; the human heart is never reached; masks and deception are the rule. There is no compassion, no understanding, no love. Tommy has been naked and miserably alone since he lost his job and has no sense of belonging to the community of men. Tommy Wilhelm, the protagonist of Seize the Day, is a character in turmoil. He is burdened by, among other things, job loss, financial instability, the separation of his wife, and his relationship with his father. He is a man in search of himself that the reader can observe and follow over the course of a single, significant day of his life, a day that is called his "day of reckoning". The book begins, "when it came to hiding his problems, Tommy Wilhelm was no less capable than anyone else. So at least he thought..." Concealment is a problem at hand. Significantly, Tommy had been an actor, albeit a failed one, as well as a salesman. He had learned to wear masks, play roles and "sell himself". However, on the day the narrative takes place, Tommy must free himself from all this and discover who he really is. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Through the use of money as a motif, Bellow shows Wilhelm's isolation through his unconventional opinions. “How they love money… They love money! Holy money! Beautiful money!... If you didn't have it you were an idiot... if only he could find a way out. (Below, 36). Wilhelm directly states that he does not want to be obsessed with this money. These are Tommy's thoughts in Chapter II, in response to his father's bragging about how Tommy had managed to make "five figures." The quote indicates Tommy's disdain for money and also indicates the level of importance that is given to money in the society in which Tommy lives. The quote suggests a negative attitude towards the "they" in the quote, those who love money. The "they" refers to his father, Dr. Adler, and his "friend" Mr. Perls. Although he criticizes those who only think about money, Tommy himself spends much of the book's final chapters worrying into a state of severe nervousness about the money he has invested in the market. Furthermore, money seems to be something he cannot get away from, or rather detach himself from, within the consumer society in which he lives. Furthermore, as the book progresses, Tommy will have to shed various roles and ideas in order to become his true self and allow that true self to emerge. He will have to be abandoned by his father and surrogate father, Dr. Tamkin, for example, so that he stops seeing himself solely as a "son in a father's eyes." In this case he will also have to lose all his money in order to free himself from it and its grip. “I can't stand city life anymore and I miss the countryside. There's too much drive here for me.” (44). The city serves to create the backdrop of crowds and technology in Tommy's world. It serves to illustrate his disconnection with the external/external world, the world around him. The city is mentioned in many places in the novel: Tommy constantly claims his ownhatred towards him. He would much rather live in the country, because he's not used to it. However, there are times when he finds himself one with the city crowd. Therefore, this urban landscape can either serve as the dark backdrop to Tommy's life, the very symbol of what he is trying to escape, or it can be a force that allows him to feel solidarity with his fellow man. Tommy, it is clear, plays many roles. He plays the role of Adler's son, a role that is difficult to escape. He cares too much how his father sees him. And he often becomes the "failure" he believes his father sees in him. He has been an actor, a hospital orderly, a ditch digger, a toy salesman, a self-dealer and a public relations man for a hotel in Cuba. So he has been many characters and never his true self. Under his masks, as the reader has the privilege of discovering through interior monologues, he is truly an introvert trapped in the body of a man forced into extroversion, he is also sensitive and almost, at times, feminine. This femininity, however, is mocked and criticized by her father when she accuses him of having had an affair with a man from his office. Using Wilhelm's father's fixation on mundane aspects of Wilhelm's life as a motif, Bellow demonstrates isolation. “Get away from me now. It's torture for me to look at you, you slob!" - exclaimed Doctor Adler. (110)-how his father reacts when he makes a bad decision with money. Even Tommy's father, Dr. Adler, refuses to get involved in his son's desperate loneliness. Tommy needs money which he assumes his father could easily provide him, but Adler is very distressed, even backs down, when the subject is mentioned. Again and again he appeals to his father for compassion, for money. But his appeal is always futile, because his father's response is always a cold, detached, yet bitter and angry analytical denunciation of Tommy's past failures and present ignominy. In fact, his father is ashamed of his son. “Tommy was deeply saddened that his father spoke so fondly of his well-being” (10). Tommy even wonders if his father has lost his sense of family. His relationship with his father is mainly about getting money from him, and the money is always wasted by him. He accuses his father of thinking only in terms of money because he doesn't give it to him to waste, to play it on the market. He feels like he doesn't have enough, so he maintains the relationship with his father even though he isn't comfortable with it. The most difficult challenge in understanding Dr. Adler, Tommy's father, is that one must realize, first, that we see Dr. Adler through Tommy's eyes. It's difficult to trust the point of view of a character who is constantly in flux. For example, his son often vilifies Adler, however, we must question the wickedness to truly understand Adler's character. Furthermore, it is Tommy who often maligns what his father tells him and, at times, even seems to misunderstand. This is not to say that Adler is not, at times, cruel, but simply to say that his wickedness and apparent tyrannical behavior must be questioned when considering the point of view. By showing the reason for Wilhelm's confusion with society's infatuation with money and the way money is treated, Bellow portrays isolation. “You could last fifty years before you get anywhere. This way, in one leap, the world knows who you are." (22). Tommy's ex-wife, Margaret, reinforces his feeling of alienation. she is introduced to the reader through the mind of her husband, Tommy. Bellow describes Margaret as a bitch and a castrating sadist. She is cruel, cold and unpleasant. Speaking of his wife,."