Imagery of pleasure
The "treatment" that Kellogg and his associates perform for Eleanor is everything she ever wanted. Their approach is tantric and experimental, placing the focus on her and her feelings, her internal narrative of self, and also pleasure and release. Depiction of her treatment involves thinly veiled sexual experimentation with the doctors, and she receives regular "massages," during which the doctors perform sexual acts for her.
Imagery of torture
Meanwhile, Eleanor's bliss is Will's absolute horror. He is removed from his own autonomy, institutionalized with his wife, but quickly separated from her. Often, when she goes off for her daily delights, he is subjected to experimental "medicine," that is emotional torture for him. He is even made to watch his friend be electrocuted during a "therapy session."
Imagery of claustrophobia and paranoia
Much of the imagery focuses on the narrow design of the facility, making Will feel trapped. After all, it is a sanatorium, and its description should be enough to cause any freedom-loving person to shudder. This imagery underscores Will's relentless desire to be free. His addictions play into this imagery too, because the imagery of his story suggests feelings of entrapment, misrepresentation, and paranoia.
Imagery of commercial life
The strangest kind of imagery is the use of surreal references to real life history and companies. Although this story is a fictitious version of events, it does offer a unique perspective. Ossining, Bender, and George Kellogg explain business plans that the reader knows about through the ubiquity of Kellogg branded cereals. This novel's depiction of that business's formation bodes poorly for saps like Will and Eleanor.
