Literary Elements In The Destructors

Even though the story, “The Destructors” by Graham Greene utilizes some elements of commercial fiction it can be categorized as literary fiction. This story contains more of the complex elements of literary fiction. The story’s main literary elements include intricate conflicts, a unique protagonist, and

On the surface, the conflict of the story appears to be based simply around the Wormsley Common Gang and the destruction of the house. However, once readers go deeper the conflicts in the story begin to reveal themselves as more complex and literary. They’re not just boys that want to generate chaos and destruction, but they’re boys that are living amongst the consequences of war. This is prominently displayed when it is described in the story that the boys would meet “every morning in an impromptu car-park, the site of the last bomb of the first blitz”. It’s absurd for a group of young boys to meet in a site where a bombing took place instead of a regular setting more suitable for young boys such as a park. This specific detail of the story demonstrates how this group of young boys literally hang around in the remnants of the war and how to they

Trevor’s character has more depth, background, and motives. In the beginning of the story, we learn about his father’s former job as an architect, his mother’s feelings of superiority, and how his family had “come down in the world”. This reveals even more information as one can assume that his family was affected by the war and they just went from upper class citizens to lower class citizens. In addition, this might contribute to his motives when it comes to ravaging Old Misery’s house since the house reminds him of everything that he used to have before the war robbed him of what his family once had. The way that Trevor’s character begins to unravel makes him a round character since he is complex and