The Pilot's Dismembered Leg

The Pilot’s lost leg symbolizes his capture. If the pilot were of able body, he could go wherever he wanted, which would encapsulate the fact that he is free. However, the reader learns that the pilot loses his leg at the beginning of the story. This foreshadows the fact that he is trapped in the hospital room, because he does not have the power to move anywhere else.

The Fly/The Junkers 88

The fly in the pilot’s hospital room and the German war plane represents the pilot’s failing grip on reality. On page 304, the pilot listens to the sound of the fly’s wings buzzing, which assimilates with the sound of the Junkers 88 flying nearby. This emphasizes the pilot’s worsening grip on reality because it raises the question as to whether the pilot is imagining that the fly is...