Contents of the Dead Man's Pocket

“At his desk again Tom lighted a cigarette; then a few moments later […] he set it on the rim of the ashtray.”

The presence of the lighted cigarette on the rim of the ashtray foreshadows an event that occurs later in the story. On the ledge, Tom looks into the living room and sees that the cigarette is still burning and has a long ash, indicating that he has been outside only a few minutes. He is shocked by this realization, since his time on the ledge feels like an eternity to him. This speaks to the psychological effects of fear, which can warp a person’s perceptions.

“You won’t mind though, will you, when the money comes rolling in and I’m known as the Boy Wizard of Wholesale Groceries?”

Tom is motivated by two objectives: making a lot of money and being recognized and admired in his profession. Both of his objectives are reflected in his desire to “climb to where he was determined to be, at the very top” (22). His ambition to succeed, a major theme in the story, informs every decision in his life.

“He walked to the front-door closet to help her on with her coat. He kissed her then and for an instant, holding her close, smelling the perfume she had used, he was tempted to go with her; it was not actually true that he had to work tonight, though he very much wanted to.”

Tom’s relentless ambition impacts his relationship with Clare. He loves Clare, but he denies himself the pleasure of her company; his obsession with work overrides his desire to be with her. In his pursuit of success, Tom sacrifices the joy to be found in his marriage.

“Then as the moving air stilled completely, […] he saw the yellow sheet drop to the window ledge and slide over out of sight.”

The yellow sheet of paper blowing out the living room window is the inciting incident that initiates the story’s plot. The paper is filled with all the notes Tom has recorded through painstaking weeks of research; its loss drives Tom to act and directs his subsequent decisions.

“It was hard for him to understand that he actually had to abandon [the yellow paper]—it was ridiculous—and he began to curse. Of all the papers on his desk, why did it have to be this one in particular!”

Seeing the yellow paper five yards away on the ledge under his window, Tom searches the apartment for something long enough to reach it—a fireplace poker, a broom, and a mop—but none nothing is long enough. Realizing the paper is lost, Tom’s initial response is anger and disbelief; the intensity of his reaction develops his character by indicating his emotional investment in his work.

“For many seconds he believed he was going to abandon the yellow sheet, that there was nothing else to do. The work could be duplicated [and presented to his boss later]. Even though his plan were adopted, he told himself, it wouldn’t bring him a raise in pay—not immediately, anyway, or as a direct result. It won’t bring me a promotion either, he argued—not of itself.”

Through the omniscient point of view, the story details how Tom’s mind works—how it moves from one thought to another, from the moment the yellow paper sails out the window until Tom breaks the glass with his first. When Tom initially believes he must “abandon the yellow sheet” (22), he tries to rationalize the loss to make it acceptable.

“By a kind of instinct, he instantly began making his intention acceptable to himself by laughing at it. The mental picture of himself sidling along the ledge outside was absurd—it was actually comical—and he smiled.”

After deciding to climb onto the ledge to retrieve the yellow paper, Tom rationalizes his decision by finding humor in it. His decision is foolish and dangerous, but recognizing that reality would force him to relinquish weeks of work and an opportunity to further his ambitions by impressing his boss.

“It was hard to take the first shuffling sideways step then—and the fear stirred in his stomach, but he did it, again by not allowing himself time to think.”

By “not allowing himself to think,” Tom erects a psychological defense to control his fear while pursuing his objective: possession of the yellow paper. Before stepping onto the ledge, he had hurried before he thought about what he was about to do. At various points in the story, his mind shuts down almost completely to create a barrier against being overwhelmed by fear.

“At the same instant he saw, between his legs and far below, Lexington Avenue stretched out for miles ahead […] For a motionless instant he saw himself externally—bent practically double, balanced on this narrow ledge, nearly half his body projecting out above the street far below […].”

Since first stepping out onto the ledge, Tom has looked straight ahead or sideways over his shoulder, seeing only the building’s wall, his apartment window, and the other lighted windows across the street. When he looks down at Lexington Avenue, he finally sees himself “externally” and is confronted with the perilous reality of his situation. In his mind’s eye, Tom views his body as it would be seen by someone across the street or below him. The shift in Tom’s physical point of view emphasizes the mortal danger of his situation and precipitates his changed internal perspective, as he realizes that his work his not worth his life.

“It occurred to him irrelevantly that his death on the sidewalk below would be an eternal mystery; the window closed—why, how, and from where could he have fallen? No one would be able to identify his body for a time, either—the thought was somehow unbearable and increased his fear. All they’d find in his pockets would be the yellow sheet. Contents of the dead man’s pockets, he thought, one sheet of paper bearing penciled notations—incomprehensible.”

Tom’s thoughts about falling from the ledge onto the sidewalk below and the immediate aftermath of his death are “unbearable” and frightening. He would die alone under mysterious circumstances, with nothing in his possession to identify him or suggest anything about him or his life—other than the yellow sheet of paper filled with “incomprehensible” notes. He would be an anonymous person, only a body on the sidewalk.

“He wished, then, that he had not allowed his wife to go off by herself tonight—and on similar nights. He thought of all the evenings he had spent away from her, working; and he regretted them. He thought wonderingly of his fierce ambition and of the direction his life had taken; he thought of the hours he’d spent by himself, filling the yellow sheet that had brought him out here. Contents of the dead man’s pockets, he thought with sudden fierce anger, a wasted life.”

The most important symbolism of the yellow sheet of paper is made clear: It symbolizes the wasted life Tom has been living by allowing his “fierce ambition” to determine the direction of his life. His moment of insight fills him with “fierce anger.” The repetition of “fierce” in describing his ambition and his anger emphasizes his emotional turmoil.

“His elbow protruding over Lexington Avenue far below […] he waited, feeling the sick tenseness and terrible excitement building. It grew and swelled toward the moment of action, his nerves tautening. He thought of Clare—just a wordless, yearning thought—and then drew his arm back just a bit more […] knowing he was going to do it. Then with full power, with every last scrap of strength he could bring to bear, he shot his arm forward toward the glass, and he said, ‘Clare!’”

Suspense builds throughout the story as Tom struggles to survive on the ledge. It reaches greatest intensity when, knowing he may die at this moment, Tom acts to save his life by shattering the glass of the living room window. Tom’s strong will to live is evident throughout the story, and he refuses to postpone doing what he must to avoid dying. Calling out Clare’s name at the last moment suggests that she is now his reason to live.

“He heard the sound, felt the blow, felt himself falling forward, and his hands closed on the living-room curtains, the shards and fragments of glass showering onto the floor […] And, as he grasped the edges of the empty window frame and climbed into his home, he was grinning in triumph […] He did not lie down on the floor or run through the apartment, as he had promised himself; even in the first few moments it seemed to him natural and normal that he should be where he was.”

The moment Tom breaks the window and steps into his living room represents the story’s dramatic climax. His immediate reaction afterward seems odd. He has barely survived a deadly experience, but he “[grins] in triumph” when he reaches safety. He gives no thought to what he has endured and how it might have ended, and “even in the first few moments it seemed to him natural and normal that he should be where he was.” Tom’s immediate emotional response to his traumatic experience could suggest that he continues to protect himself by refusing to think.