Tomorrow Comes by Sidney Sheldon

¶ … tomorrow comes " by Sidney Sheldon

The Significance of Setting in Sidney Sheldon's if Tomorrow Comes

Sidney Sheldon's novel, if Tomorrow Comes, is largely an adventure book, in which the action and the plot move ahead breathlessly, keeping the suspense up from the beginning to the very end, and even after. The book starts off with a shocking event, plunging the reader right in the middle of the action, and affording no time for accommodation. Doris Whitney, the mother of Tracy Whitney who is the main character of the book, mysteriously commits suicide by putting a gun to her head in her New Orleans Home. This is actually the event that triggers the rest of the action in the book, completely and indefinitely disrupting Tracy's peaceful and happy life. Moreover, as it was said, the book ends in a suspenseful tone as well: even if everything turns well eventually and Tracy is safely embarked on a plane that will lead her to a new life with her fiance Jeff Stevens, the last lines of the book introduce a new and mysterious character by the name of Maximlien Pierpont, who only just makes Tracy's acquaintance as the book ends. This leaves the story hanging and the actual end of the story can only be a groping surmise.

The continuous action of the book follows Tracy's adventures and her sometimes harrowing experiences. While Tracy, as well as the other characters in the book, are rather sketches than fully-fledged persons, what is interesting is the way in which Tracy is transformed into a much more sophisticated and experienced woman. The setting and the experiences she has to undergo, make of Tracy a stronger and more accomplished woman. At the beginning of the book, Tracy is a perfectly happy young woman, with almost no experience of pain or evil in any way. She is an impassioned and successful career woman, working for a prestigious bank in Philadelphia and about to marry the man she loves. Moreover, her fiance seems to be a fairy tale prince, handsome, gallant and incredibly rich. In the height of her happiness, Tracy also finds out that she is carrying Charles Stanhope's child. Her perfect happiness is in a continuous growth for the few first pages of the novel. Tracy is beautiful, young, successful and about to marry the man of her dreams: "That morning the people would turn they heads smiling when she passed by, envying the happiness that radiated on her face. She would return the smile."(Sidney, 13) on the point of being promoted in the bank and on setting the wedding date with Charles, Tracy's world crumbles when a midnight telephone call announces the death of her mother. Although the effect of this upturn is dramatic, there are hints that something was not right in Tracy's life even before her mother's suicide. In her absolute ingenuousness, she fails to see Charles' less than perfect character and his pedantry. She cannot see the signs that clearly indicate that Charles does not actually love her and would be incapable of actually understanding her, as she will see later on.

Tracy wakes up from her dream to an actual nightmare after she hears about her mother's death. The fact that her relationship with Charles is not as perfect as she had imagined it becomes obvious when she feels unable to confide in her lover and tell her of her mother's suicide. Unconsciously, Tracy feels that Charles is unable to understand her and offer her the unconditional affection and sympathy that she needs. The situation gets complicated very fast, as Tracy finds out in a shock that her mother's suicide was caused by a certain Joe Romano, who tricked her into selling her small but honest business, a heritage from her dead husband, and then frames her. Unable to cope with the shame and the disappointment, Tracy's mother feels that there is no other escape for her than death and thus takes her own life. Even from the beginning thus, money is a central issue of the book. It is because of money that Tracy's mother commits suicide. At the same time, it is obvious that Tracy herself is extremely ingenuous and unknowing. Although she works in a bank and she handles transfers of million of dollars every day, Tracy only finds her job fascinating, without having any sense of the corruption and crime that money can produce. Thus, from the beginning the setting of the book is very significant, as it helps shape the main character's personality.

Even from the first pages of the novel, Tracy is surrounded by money. It is because of money and corruption that her life will eventually change forever. In her innocence, she is so outraged by her mother's death that she naively tries to force Joe Romano into confessing his deeds. At this point, Tracy is so naive that she believes that justice will be done quickly and that people will believe her. In her desperation, she buys a gun with which she plans to threaten Joe Romano, hoping that thus he will be made to confess and even sign a written declaration that would clear her mother's name. Her attempt obviously fails, as once she enters Romano's mansion, her plan is completely overturned. Romano tries to rape her, and in the attempt to protect herself, Tracy pulls the trigger of her gun and shots him. Seeing him lying on the floor, she gets scarred, calls an ambulance and then runs away. When she gets to the airport, she is caught by the police and immediately put to prison for robbery and homicide attempt. It is here that her misfortunes begin, when the New Orleans mafia, led by Joe Romano and by Anthony Orsatti, frame her and send her to prison. Through a corrupt lawyer and a corrupt judge, Tracy is made to plead guilty for robbery and put to prison. Her fifteen-year sentence seems a nightmare to Tracy. She attempts to call Charles many times, but the number of calls she gets to make in prison is very restricted. When she finally reaches him, he had already read the papers and seen the news on television about her case. His selfishness is now proven, as, instead of standing by Tracy and coming to her rescue, Charles tells her that he cannot afford tainting the family name with a scandal. He carelessly gives up his child, telling Tracy that she has to handle the situation on her own, the best way she knows.

Charles' rejection and the time she spends in prison transform Tracy completely. Gradually, she finally understands the kind of world she lives in. She begins to understand that New Orleans is practically ruled by a powerful mafia, the victim of which she has unwittingly become. The setting is thus the crucial element of the novel. Not only is Tracy's life completely transformed after she comes in contact with the mafia, but she herself is transformed into a different person. After going through horrible and dehumanizing experiences in prison, Tracy decides to fight the mafia and punish her mother's killers and her oppressors: "This city is under the rule of the Orsatti family. Nothing can be done here without the approval of Anthony Orsatti."(Sheldon, 52) the action is thus transformed in a battle against the evil and corruptness represented by the Orsatti family. Tracy, who had been the victim of the mafia, manages to take her revenge on her enemies and make sure they get their just deserts. It is when Tracy actually understands the world she is a part of, and is forced to encounter the ones that rule over it, that she actually discovers herself as well, and her own resources. The setting of the novel is thus symbolic of the incredible power of money. In the world described by the novel, justice itself is in the hands of the corrupt: "This city is theirs, as well as most of its judges. If you'll go on trial, they will make you sink so deep that you will never see the light of day again."(Sheldon, 53) Tracy's revenge is thus more than a personal act: it is an act that is meant to balance the absolute corruptness described at the beginning of the book

No less than real life, Tracy's imprisonment is an excruciating experience for her. Probably the most effectual part of the novel, the description of the few months that Tracy spends in prison is extremely disturbing. The young woman wakes up in a jungle in which none of the rules of humaneness and decency that she had known remain valid. From the sordidness of the cells and the general filthiness, to the jungle-like behavior of women, everything about this new setting is shocking for Tracy. Her first reaction to the new environment is one of denial, as her mind refuses to recognize the atrocities that take place behind bars. In her still almost untouched naivety, Tracy leaves under the impression that it is only her fear that makes her imagine the fierceness of her surroundings. In this part of the book, the setting probably plays the most important place. Tracy gets in contact with the animal, inhuman side of people when she has to bear the cruelty of the other women in prison: "The three women were watching her, observing her with such insistence that she felt as if she were naked. Fresh meat. She felt terrified all of a sudden."(Sheldon, 73) Even from her first night there, she is abused and beaten by her cell mates and, as a result, she loses her baby. At the beginning, Tracy's mind is so unaccustomed to the concept of evil and baseness, that she tries to soothe her mind into believing she is only imagining perils and menaces: "She was a nervous wreck and everything seemed menacing to her. Had her mates really menaced her? No, not really. She saw sinister intentions in an attitude that was probably only friendly."(Sheldon, 80) Tracy had obviously never been in contact with actual cruelty before.

The interesting thing about Tracy's time in prison however is the fact that she not only manages to survive there, but that she already becomes a different, stronger person. When she is locked away in the dark for a week, as part of her punishment detention, Tracy somehow succeeds in finding the necessary strength to face the other women in the prison and her own circumstances at the same time. Driven by her desire to see justice done, she exercises her body and her spirit at the same time, through special, Oriental techniques, which finally give her the strength to face her surroundings. Thus, Tracy wins an important victory over the environment in which she has to live, emerging from her fight as a different person. At the same time, she does not become indifferent and hardened like the other women in the penitentiary. She becomes stronger, but she preserves her sensibility, only pretending to carelessness when she sees the atrocities that take place around her. Thus, Tracy is still affected when she has to hear at night the screams of those who are weaker and thus are made to suffer by the stronger ones. The force of the setting is unarguably a baffling one in Tracy's case. The prison with its own specific, closed world, teaches her an important lesson is humanity and its negative side: "The jail had a music of its own: the bells, the shuffling of feet on the concrete floor, the clang of the metal doors, the whispering during the day, the screaming during the night..."(Sheldon, 110) it is this setting that actually transforms Tracy, rather than what happens to her as such.

Tracy is however kept going by her plan of getting her revenge. Despite the fact that she has so little perspective of her dreary future that she cannot even be certain of the fact that tomorrow will even arrive for her, Tracy manages to keep her hopes alive, living in the certainty that she will have a chance to find her revenge: "They will pay. All of them. She had no idea how she will do it, but she knew she will get her revenge. 'Tomorrow, she thought. If tomorrow comes."(Sheldon, 85) Although she is completely alone in a world in which she cannot trust anyone or rely on anyone, and although she is even uncertain whether she will survive the next day, Tracy finds the necessary resources to fight against her surroundings and hope for a realization of her plans.

The fact that her humaneness is still intact despite the harsh environment she comes in contact with is evident in the gesture that actually liberates her from prison. Precisely on the day that she had planned her escape, Tracy saves the life of a little Amy, whom she was in charge of. When the girl falls into a pond and is ready to drown, Tracy, although desperate to escape, misses her chance and chooses to save the girl's life instead. She thus acts instinctively and humanely, and for this she is finally liberated from prison by the governor of Louisiana.

Once outside, Tracy has been already completely transformed by the environment in which she had been made to live. Stronger and braver, she now unhesitatingly enters the world which had caused her to suffer so much. Pursuing her purpose of revenge, she cleverly manipulates the people that had contributed to her fall and manages to take her revenge on all of them. Thus, the extent to which the setting contributes to the changes of character in the novel is evident. Tracy begins a new life, and is now among the corrupt. Nevertheless, she is not corrupt herself in the real sense of the world. After she fulfills her revenge, Tracy has already entered the circle of the one that break the law. She however acts rather as the one who seeks justice and tries to enforce it. With her new friend, Gunther Hartog, Tracy enters the world of the con-men that rob the rich and corrupt people. Gradually thus, Tracy manages to enter the world of outlaws herself. Again the setting is crucial for her evolution as a character. More than the continuous adventure she is put through, it is the contact with this world that makes Tracy even more powerful. Thus, apparently, after having been in prison, Tracy learns how to actually break the law. On a deeper lever of analysis however, it is clear that her actions are justified by her purpose. The things that she steals only hurt the rich and corrupt people that do a lot of evil themselves: "They exploit the working class, cheat the government, raid successful companies, surely you can put their money to better use."(Sheldon, 258) Tracy thus extends her revenge from those that have harmed her, to all those that are as corrupt as they are.