Who are the three main destructors?
The Destructors Characters
- Trevor, or “T.” T. is a brooding, unhappy, rebellious adolescent and the newest member of the Wormsley Common Gang.
- Blackie. Blackie is a fifteen-year-old boy who leads the Wormsley Common Gang up to and after T.’
- Mr. Thomas, or “Old Misery”
- The lorry driver.
- Mike.
- Summers.
Why does the lorry driver laugh in the destructors?
The lorry driver’s laughter suggests that the boy’s hostility to the old pre-war world of strict social class, and their affinity for destruction, is shared more broadly by the community of people around them as well. …
Why is Trevor called T in the destructors?
Trevor, also known as T., takes over the gang from Blackie. At first, they do not make fun of him even though everything about him means they usually would. This is one of the reasons his name gets shortened to T. He never wasted a word even to tell his name until that was required of him by the rules.
Who is the antagonist of the destructors?
Trevor is the protagonist. Old Misery was the antagonist because it antagonized the gang of boys to destroy the beautiful house so that it would be no better, or worse than the rest of the town.
What is the major conflict in the destructors?
A main conflict in the story is between the old, ordered, pre-World War II way of life and the literal leveling and destruction the Wormsley Common Gang see all around them in the aftermath of the war.
Why does t want to destroy the house in the destructors?
Graham Greene himself once said, “Destruction, after all, is a form of creation.” Trevor represents class struggle; he also exhibits the nihilism that resulted from the great wars, especially World War II. They destroyed Old Misery’s house because it was there, and because mob mentality took over.
What is the message of the destructors?
Money and the Value of Things “The Destructors” focuses particularly on the clash between the pre-war and post-war generations in their relationships to money and material possessions. Perhaps in part because the boys of the gang have grown up during a time of shortage, they have little respect for money or things.
What message is Graham Greene trying to communicate with his short story The destructors?
Destruction and Creation Set in post-WWII England, the short story itself suggests the possibility of creation in the face of destruction, specifically the widespread German bombings of London. Mr. Thomas’ house itself stands between two structures destroyed by the air raids.
What is the importance in the ending of the destructors?
Expert Answers I think that part of the significance of the ending is that it helps to bring out the reality of the world following the wanton destruction that was the child of World War II. The effect of the bombing on London is evident. There is nothing but destruction that surrounds the people of London.
How old is Blackie in the destructors?
fifteen-year-old
Does the destructors portray a world without hope?
T. is presented therefore as a character who is completely detached. He neither hates nor loves and destroys without passion, anger or hatred. Greene therefore uses him as an example of the moral vacuum that he felt characterised British society following the Second World War. There is no hope in this short story.
Why does t’burn the money in the destructors?
Thomas’s money, he responds with disdain to Blackie’s inquiry as to whether he intends to steal it. For T., burning the money is a celebratory act that allows him to feel liberated from the fixation on material possessions that dominates his home life.
Why does Trevor burn Mr Thomas’s savings instead of stealing them?
The boys burn the money because they claim they aren’t thieves. Trevor didn’t want to steal from Mr. Thomas. He just wanted to destroy the house so that it was like everyone else’s.
Why is Mr Thomas’s house valuable?
Expert Answers Mr. Thomas’s house is extremely valuable because it was designed and built by the man widely considered to be England’s greatest architect, Christopher Wren. This is revealed to the gang by Trevor.
What does Mr Thomas represent in the destructors?
Thomas is a flat character in “The Destructors” by Graham Greene because he has only one or two personality traits, which are not altered in course of the narrative. In this story that is set post-World War II, Mr. Thomas represents the older generation of Great Britain and its past tradition.
Why is Mr Thomas called Old Misery?
Expert Answers Old Misery – whose real name was Thomas – had once been a builder and decorator. He lived alone in the crippled house, doing for himself. In the short story “The Destructors” Mr. Thomas is referred to as “Old Misery” by the neighborhood boys.
What does Mr Thomas Old Misery represent in the story?
Old Misery comes to symbolize the hardship in the aftermath of WWII. He’s portrayed as living in a damaged house with broken plumbing and electricity. The house used to be beautiful, refined, and upper class, but now, because of the war, it stands alone in a bombed out neighborhood.