A Perfect Day for Bananafish Allusions & Cultural References

When authors refer to other great works, people, and events, it’s usually not accidental. Put on your super-sleuth hat and figure out why.

Literature and Philosophy

  • Rainer Maria Rilke (1.36-42) – This is an implicit reference; Rilke is never mentioned by name, only referred to as a German and "the only great poet of the century."
  • Helen Bannerman, Little Black Sambo (2.52-57)
  • T. S. Eliot, "The Wasteland" (2.39) – "…mixing memory and desire…" Seymour takes this quote from the first few lines of Eliot's poem.