Quiet American
The Quiet American is an anti-war novel by British author Graham Greene, first published in United Kingdom in 1955 and in the United States in 1956. It was adapted into films in 1958 and 2002. The book draws on Greene 's experiences as a war correspondent for The Times and Le Figaro in French Indochina 1951-1954. He was apparently inspired to write The Quiet American in October 1951 while driving back to Saigon from the Ben Tre province. He was accompanied by an American aid worker who lectured him about finding a “third force in Vietnam”. Greene spent three years writing the novel, which foreshadowed US involvement in Vietnam long before it became publicly known. The book was the initial reason for Graham Greene being under constant surveillance by US intelligence agencies from the 1950s until his death in 1991, according to documents obtained in 2002 by The Guardian newspaper under the US Freedom of Information Act.[1][2]Contents [hide]
1 Plot
2 Major characters
3 Literary significance and reception
4 Allusions and references
5 Adaptations
6 References
7 External links
[edit]
Plot
Thomas Fowler is a British journalist in his fifties who has been covering the French war in Vietnam for over two years. He meets a young American idealist named Alden Pyle, who lives his life and forms his opinions based on the books written by York Harding, with no real experience in matters of south-east Asia at all. Harding 's theory is that Communism or colonialism are not the answer in foreign lands like Vietnam, but rather a "Third Force," usually a combination of traditions, works best. Pyle is young and idealistic. When Pyle and Fowler first meet, Pyle says he would be delighted if Fowler could help him understand more about the country. Fowler is much older, more realistic and more cynical.
Fowler has a live-in lover, Phuong, who is only twenty-years old and was a dancer at The Arc-en-Ciel (Rainbow) on Jaccareo Road, Cholon, until she met Fowler. Her sister
1 Plot
2 Major characters
3 Literary significance and reception
4 Allusions and references
5 Adaptations
6 References
7 External links
[edit]
Plot
Thomas Fowler is a British journalist in his fifties who has been covering the French war in Vietnam for over two years. He meets a young American idealist named Alden Pyle, who lives his life and forms his opinions based on the books written by York Harding, with no real experience in matters of south-east Asia at all. Harding 's theory is that Communism or colonialism are not the answer in foreign lands like Vietnam, but rather a "Third Force," usually a combination of traditions, works best. Pyle is young and idealistic. When Pyle and Fowler first meet, Pyle says he would be delighted if Fowler could help him understand more about the country. Fowler is much older, more realistic and more cynical.
Fowler has a live-in lover, Phuong, who is only twenty-years old and was a dancer at The Arc-en-Ciel (Rainbow) on Jaccareo Road, Cholon, until she met Fowler. Her sister
References: Notes ^ The Guardian 2 December 2002: "In life as in fiction, Greene 's taunts left Americans in a quiet fury" Retrieved 2011-06-27 ^ Michael Wynn: President Bush and The Quiet American Retrieved 2011-06-27 ^ World Socialist Web Site review of the 2002 film Retrieved 2011-06-27 ^ Quoted in "The Quiet American" by Joe Nordgren ^ Spectator Ab Extra ^ Amours de Voyage ^ Graham Greene: "The Quiet American"