The narrator of “Reunion” by John Cheever recounts the moment the narrator found his father only to be disappointed at the end. At the beginning of the story, the narrator mentions that his father was a stranger to him due to his parents' divorce. This brief explanation foreshadows the reader about the narrator's negative experience with his father, because there is a reason his parents divorced in the first place. The narrator also mentions a “rich compound of whiskey” (Cheever 338) when he smells his father during their meeting. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Throughout the story, the narrator is not seen speaking with his father, not even a single word, but the silence of the narrator speaks volumes about what he might perhaps be thinking while he and his father go to pubs. The irony is that the narrator describes the joy of meeting his estranged father for the first time by saying, "I was hoping someone would see us together." I wish we could be photographed. I wanted a record of our relationship” (Cheever 338), but this joy turns to disappointment, shock, disbelief, and regret near the end of the story when he sees what his father really is. The narrator begins by idolizing his father, knowing that he will somehow become like him in the future, continuing the legacy by saying, "I should plan my campaigns according to his limitations" (Cheever 338 ). However, the narrator's impressions of his father turn in the opposite direction as the narrator observes his father's arrogant and disrespectful behavior towards the waiters as he demands fuel for his alcoholic habit, he realizes that he would have had to expect the unexpected. The father also distances himself from his son, focusing more on ordering his drink and getting him to the club rather than showing up and catching up with his own blood. To the narrator, it seems that his father is not even aware that he is meeting his own son, nor does it seem to be anything special for him. This relates to the repetition that occurs with the word "Daddy" near the end of the story. When the narrator says, “It’s all right, Dad” (Cheever 339), when his father offers to take him back to the station, it signifies rejection and that the narrator no longer wants anything to do with him. The second "Daddy" is mentioned when the narrator tells his father, "I have to go Daddy" (Cheever 340), signifies a sign of letting go and separation, and ultimately the narrator permanently ends his father-son relationship saying “Goodbye Dad” (Cheever 340). The father could be seen as a reflection of the author, John Cheever, who also suffered from alcoholism, and could accurately describe the behavior of an alcoholic and how such a habit creates rifts in relationships. Ultimately, the narrator learns to never have high expectations, because when we fail to meet those expectations, we are not prepared to feel disappointment. The author believed that his father would present himself appropriately, as an image of his son's future self, a positive future. Someone the son can relate to, admire and catch up with. However, the son's imagination got the better of him and all he could do was leave her as she was before the reunion with his father..