The stories of Lawrence and Greene Essay Example for Free

The stories of Lawrence and Greene Essay The two stories written by David Herbert Richards Lawrence (1885 –1930) and Henry Graham Greene (1904 –1991) show that wisdom may not be always manifested by the older people. This was evident in the unexpected circumstances that came along with the stories. Sometimes it is possible that younger people can show values that reminds the older people and taught lesson as well. Then again, older people should be applying good values in normal and practical circumstances because they supposed to be the authorities that must bear the goodness. Discussions Overview The discussions are divided into four parts that are imparted by the stories of Lawrence and Greene, such as the following: (1) Compare and contrast the basic components of the two stories, relating the questions [who, what, when, where, and why] that includes the qualities of the main characters, the conflicts and climactic moments that have risen in the course of the story, and how the two stories were finally concluded. (2) Analyze the themes of the two stories that depicted the triumph of the younger ones over the older characters. (3) Answer the question on how exactly the younger ones operate their own pace and almost with autonomy. (4) Examine the styles and purposes of the two authors in writing their respective short stories as well how the two stories end up showing the concept that wisdom may not be always monopolized by the older generations. Comparison and contrast In ‘The Destructors’ which was written by Henry Graham Greene in 1954 and presently republished by Geocities. Com web site, the readers were introduced to the main characters of a hooligan group of Wormsley Common Gang which is based in London. Their core members were Trevor (known as T), Mike, Blackie, Joe, and Summer. Their motivation or mission is to basically wreak havoc in the areas within their reach so that they can control and get famous. This group do not do show any emotion yet very objective with the ways they carried out business or disasters which they feel nothing personal. On the other hand, ‘The Rocking White Horse Winner’ which was written by David Herbert Richards Lawrence and first published in 1926 by Harpers Bazaar Publishing has depicted that everything has to do with the personal and subjective side of the main characters, such as Paul, his mother, and his uncle. The least subjective or â€Å"personal† character that can be found was ‘Bassette’ as their handyman and garden caretaker. In the story, Paul had to carry out his betting operations out of a personal motivation of bringing in money for his family. He felt that all he was doing to win was to gain luck. This luck is for money which he believes to making his family happy. Analysis on the themes The two stories were set in London with different era. The Destructors could have been intently set to depict the decades of 1980s until 2000s. This may be gathered from the way the characters and the author told their stories and lines. However, The Rocking Horse Winner may have been set within the decades of early 1950s until 1960s because of the way the languages were spoken and how the lines were carried out. Most of the conflicts raised on both stories have something to do with the grown-ups who reasoned out to impose their own ways and being unreasonable authorities over the youngsters. Youngsters pace and autonomy There was a time in The Destructors when â€Å"Old Misery† was imposing his rules to the gang; that they could not just go around and play within his property’s premises without his permission. This was a reasonable rule given by Old Misery, and he was quite entertaining to the kids, particularly to â€Å"T† because he showed the kid around his house. Then again, the anger here was the objective mission of the group—they did not care whether they liked the old man or not, whether the rules were unreasonable or not, because they were doing this, unnecessarily out of fun, but for the mission that they wanted to get famous and become a notorious gang (Greene 3-5). Furthermore, with ‘The Rocking Horse Winner’, Paul’s mother insisted he must not be thinking anymore about the nonsensical nature of the races. This was their conflict. It seemed that the reasons of his mother’s authority imposition were reasonable as well. The child will get worse and sicker because of the madness he has been thinking of in his innocent but receptive mind (Lawrence 6-10). Still, this did not stop Paul from betting for the last horserace winner he identified because it was for the very reason that he cared for his mother’s contentment that they would no longer need ‘more money. ’ These two conflicts have led to the climax that although both all the young ones were winners and successful in fulfilling their objectives, one was meditated on, while the other won without him fully controlling and recognizing it. The Destructors won because they have deliberately destroyed Old Misery’s house despite interruptions, while Paul won because although he died and was not able to control his thoughts, he still was able to get the money he wanted out of the horserace bet that he did. The characters of the two stories have triumphed over the older characters who were supposed to be the ones teaching a lesson and imposing authority. This was because of the same mistake that the older characters committed, in which they failed to get through the minds of the younger ones, of what they were really thinking at the time. This could have explained why there was so much aggression and motivation carried out by the younger ones in doing what they have done. They were also able to operate their activities in their own pace and almost with autonomy. The adults simply told them â€Å"Don’t do this and not that either,† but did not manage to control their minds into thinking of why they must not be doing what they were doing because they lead to catastrophe. This was why they also did their operations in secret. They dared not tell their superiors of what they were aiming for, giving them further freedom. Without the adults getting through the younger ones, there will be lessons that they ought to re-learn and wisdom has been taught by the younger generations this time. Authors’ styles and purposes Lastly, with the way the authors have written their pieces, both had different styles. Greene wrote in s seemingly investigative, â€Å"operational† manner, while Lawrence preferred to lean on what the characters had to say in each situation, that each person’s emotions and facial expressions are imagined by the readers. While Lawrence wrote his piece in a way that readers will be more sensitive and reflective of life’s lessons, Greene wrote his piece in an almost satirical way, especially on the part when the driver could not help but find the unfortunate incident of Mr. Thomas, in which it was quite funny. Conclusion In conclusion, the main points showed that wisdom does not matter age because of times that it may not be usually and obviously manifested by older people. There are instances when the older generation must also learn from the younger ones. Works Cited Lawrence, D. F. â€Å"The Rocking-Horse Winner. 1926. Harpers Bazaar. 30 June 2009 http://www. dowse. com/fiction/Lawrence. html Greene, H. G. â€Å"The Destructors†. 1954. Geocities. Com. 30 June 2009 http://www. geocities. com/borderline_ps2/00000098c8132df01. html