From Desolation To Despair

Graham Greene(1904-1991) is a remarkable British writer of the 20th century. His works explore the problems confronted by human beings in life in all aspects and he shows special concern over the conflicts between the society and the individual and also his preoccupation with the meaning and state of the existence of human beings. His early novel The Heart of the Matter is not merely confined to a simple reflection of reality, but it is also a revelation of the state in which man exists. In another typical"Greeneland", people's life is shrouded by anxiety and hopelessness. The protagonist Scobie is occupied by a sense of desolation and gets trapped between the seedy environment and his good will. At the end, he is overwhelmed by a sense of despair and decides to commit suicide in the dilemma as a way of salvation. Scobie's suicide, thus, can be approached from an existential perspective.