Envy Leads to Destruction Set in post World War Two England, Graham Greene's "The Destructors" shows the lives of a small gang of boys living in a desolate area of London. Amongst the ruins of a bomb site, these anti-heroes plan out daily shenanigans such as catching free rides on local buses or petty thievery. In the story, the gang's leader, Blackie, is suddenly, but democratically, usurped from his role as leader to a newer gang member named T. He suggests, instead of their regular boyish crimes, to break into a building in their area and destroy it completely from the inside out while the owner is away on Bank Holiday. The boys manage to completely destroy the building, much to the dismay of the owner and the humor of everyone else. However, …show more content…
In fact his name is one of higher social standing and his mother, though less wealthy now, still acts snobbishly. His father, "a former architect and present clerk" (113) likely passed down his architectural knowledge to Trevor. This is evidenced by the fact Trevor could name the architect of the building he seeks to destroy. The building, owned by "Old Misery" was designed by Sir Christopher Wren, the architect who built Saint Paul's Cathedral in London. It came as a shock to the gang when Trevor broodingly said "'Wren built that house'" (113), as the gang never heard him say more than "yes" or "no" during voting. Greene wrote Trevor said this broodingly, indicating he possibly had a plan in his mind to destroy the building from the beginning. T. asks Mr. Thomas "Old Misery" to see the inside of the building. Upon seeing it, Trevor is stunned at its magnificence, even telling his friends "It's a beautiful house" (114). It is possible Trevor was jealous of Mr. Thomas. Coming from a formerly wealthy family, Trevor was likely used to the good things in life, and he likely missed his former standard of living. The building reminded him of his former life, which he evidently missed. Trevor's father was an architect, and it is obvious Trevor appreciates architecture. Why would he want to destroy the building? He believed if he couldn't …show more content…
Blackie and Trevor come upon some bank notes under Mr. Thomas' mattress, and Blackie suggests they steal the money. However, Trevor decides to burn the notes instead, and immediately after, Trevor tells Blackie "All this hate and love, it's soft, it's hooey. There's only things, Blackie" (119). This shows Trevor only cares about material things; he doesn't care about emotions. Since he only cares about material objects, one can infer he wouldn't have been happy with the things he did have in his current state in life, such as the love of friends and family; love isn't good enough for him. One can infer he might want his old, cushiony life back, and seeing how he likely can't, he becomes envious of those who do have wealth, joining a gang that despises the upper