Compare and Contrast

In short fiction stories, the main ideas that the author is trying to communicate are conveyed through the use of developing elements such the setting and characterization. Specifically, these two elements of short story fiction are particularly fascinating and extremely effective in communicating the true "meat" of the stories and communicating the big picture and point of the story. In reading "The Destructors" by Graham Greene and also "The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell, the use of setting and characterization truly enhance the stories to a point to where the reader truly understands the deeper meaning behind the stories. Although these stories are completely different in almost every aspect, they both use the same elements of fiction to effectively communicate the deeper messages intended by the authors.

In my opinion, the setting of a story is perhaps the most important aspect of short story fiction. It lays the groundwork and develops a foundation for what lies ahead in the content of the stories. Not only does it lay the foundation for the stories, it creates the mood, allows for the tone to be set and really draws the reader into the story so that they are in the story and can see every detail. In Greene's "The Destructors", the setting is created masterfully. We see that it is "the first August bank holiday" and that there is a sort of "gang" of younger boys that is meeting. The next thing we see is an impromptu car park that was the location of the last bomb explosion of the first blitz. "On one side of the car park leant the first occupied house, No. 3 of the shattered Northwood Terrace". The reader is thrown into a post-WWII London that is broken and shattered. We can clearly see the gang of young boys meeting in the car park that is surrounded by bomb ridden houses and buildings. This setting would be a hard place to be for anyone, especially a group of young boys.