Historical criticism: approaches and methodologies

Graham Greene "The Power and the Glory" Historical Criticism

Graham Greene: The Power and the Glory

Historical Criticism

The purpose of this work is to critique the author's social, political and intellectual surroundings or the author's own biography, his life experiences or psychological makeup. This work will explore what it was in Graham Greene's history that led to his writing the work entitled "The Power and the Glory."

The Power and the Glory was published in 1940 and was the winner of the Hawthornden Prize. The work was condemned by the Vatican in 1953. Evelyn Waugh, leading actor advised Greene they "they have taken fourteen years to write their first letter. You should take fourteen years to answer it." The Church's demands for revisions were not outright refused by Greene but he did reply that the publisher already had possession of the copyright and the matter was dismissed.

Henry Graham Greene (1904-1991)

Greene was born "Henry Graham Greene on October 2, 1904 in Berkhamsted, Herfordshire. He was four in the line of six children and was said to be shy and sensitive in his youth disliking sports and on many occasions truant from school. He would stay away from school to read authors such as Rider Haggard and R.M. Ballantyne who wrote adventure stories. These works greatly influenced and shaped the writing style of Greene.

Green's school years were troubled due to the fact that he was tormented because he was the headmaster's son. Green repeatedly attempted suicide and finally left school one day never to return. He wrote his parents of the fact that he did not wish to return and his parents sent him to London to a therapist at the age of fifteen. Kenneth Richmond, Greene's analyst encouraged his writing and introduced him to a literary circle of acquaintances and friends which was inclusive of Walter de la Mare, a noted poet of that day.

Awards and Works of Greene

Greene won the Edgar Allan Poe aware for Best Critical/Biographical Study in 1990 for Volume I of the "The World of Graham Greene." Greene Studied modern history at Balliol College and writes that he spent the years at the university in a state of drunkenness and ridden with debt. It was however during this years, he writes in his autobiography that he was the editor at "The Oxford Outlook" and gained much experience in that capacity.

Greene's interest in politics developed after having joined the Communist Party, which he states was more for purposes of amusement than for principle beliefs. Greene wrote a novel "Anthony Sant" honing his writing skills prior to graduation. He graduated with B.A. In the year of 1925 and found employment at the Nottingham Journal as subeditor. His novel entitled "Brighton Rock" tells of Green's abhorrence of Nottingham's seedy nature.

He met Vivien Dayrell-Browning who wrote to indicate errors regarding the Catholic faith in his writings and upon her suggestion took instructions in the Catholic faith received by the Catholic Church in 1926. The next employment for Greene was at the Times in London as subeditor. During the year of 1927 he married Vivien and of the two was born a daughter, Lucy Caroline and a son, Francis. Somewhere around the time of his children's births Greene wrote a novel "The Episode" which publishers rejected but he did finally succeed in publishing the work entitled "The Man Within" which was successful enough that he left his employment to write fulltime. "The Man Within" portrayed him as a pathological liar, a hater of Jews, a philanderer and a political igniter of wrath.

Green's service duty during World War II with the British Secret Intelligence Service was that which provided him with the subject matter for writing the works containing political intrigue such as The Ministry of Fear (1943), The Quiet American, Our Man in Havana, The Comedians (1969) and The Honorary Consul (1973).

Greene has the claim to being one of the most read authors of the twentieth century as well as being one of the most controversial. Greene was many times considered for the Nobel Prize for literature but due to the controversial nature of his works illustrated through violence and religious themes he was never chosen for the honor vested in the Nobel Prize in the realm of literary works.

The Power and the Glory"

Graham Greene's novel "The Power and the Glory" is known to draw parallels with T.S. Elliot's poem entitled "The Hollow Men." The hollow men are said to wander in a barren landscape trying to remember the line that flows "For Thine is the Kingdom" in the Lord's Prayer. The phrase, of course, is "The Power and the Glory."

The work "The Power and the Glory" is set in Southern Mexico and is the tracing of the last days of the journey of a Catholic Priest towards the goals of freedom as he flees from a state that has effectively outlaws the beliefs as well as the institution of the Catholic Church. The books find him traveling through Indian villages and as well as in his mind he travels through his own spiritual failings, religious doubts, through personal temptations as well as through danger and on finally to safety. The perverse nature of life, the struggle of life with its corruption and failings are clearly illustrated in the priest who is nameless and as well in those he encounters in his journeys. This is inclusive in the characters of his daughter and his own personal Judas. The work questions love, questions the nature of human beings and questions the strength that the human soul possesses.

Critique of "The Power and the Glory"

It is quite easy to see the struggles that Greene had personally and individually with religion as the struggles of the priest are followed in the work "The Power and the Glory." In fact, this work appears to be much of an autobiography on Greene's part as so much of the struggles and questions of his own life and faced yet once again by the nameless priest. The work is the tale of a priest who has continued for eight years to say mass and administer the sacraments even though all of this has been outlawed by the Mexican Government. The priest stays on the move from village to village and is constantly pursued by a young lieutenant, a revolutionary who believes that the government will be able to rid the country of poverty if only the church would cease its aid of the poor in spirit yet ignoring their physical needs. The setting of this book is during the 1930's totalitarian rule of Mexico south of Mexico City in the province of Tabasco. Graham traveled Mexico for the express purpose of the development of the settings and characters in this book and as well for investigating the persecution of the Catholic Church and faith in this area of the world.

The priest is a character full of complexity that lackadaisically landed in first the priesthood, secondly the role of a martyr and finally the role of a saint through lack of anything else to do. Two themes are present in the work which are (1) a religious theme inclusive of devotion, faith and martyrdom; and (2) a view of the Marxist criticism of the church in its' failure to alleviate poverty among its followers. Religious themes are employed in the work as the priest is trying to escape and indeed on the very verge of escape but then is called back "three times" to administer the sacraments to individuals who are dying. This is parallel to Jesus telling Peter that he will deny him three times, as well as other religious themes.

The work "The Power and the Glory" illustrates through the priest the capacity for redemption of even those who are corrupt through salvation. This was however, not the view held by the Catholic Church in their view of the novel. The view of the Catholic Church, was that "the latter element" -- that is, human wretchedness -- had appeared "to carry the day" in a way that did injury "to certain priestly characters and even to the priesthood itself." Moreover, the novel portrayed a state of affairs so "paradoxical" and "erroneous" that it would disconcert "unenlightened persons" who formed "the majority of the readers."