Graham Greene: A Study of His Major Novels (Hardbound - 2007)

One of Britain’s most interesting and complex contemporary novelists, Graham Greene is eminently readable and hugely topical. A diverse and prolific writer, he has also written poetry, children’s books, film scripts, political reportage and travel books. Greene’s novels have evoked lively interest not only in literary and academic circles but also gained popularity with the general reading public and cinema audience. In an attempt to establish their individual points of view critics have examined Greene as a Catholic writer, a political writer, a comic spy thriller writer, but have tended to ignore the central aspect of Greene’s fiction—his dominant concern with human predicament which forms the nucleus of his entire vision.

Graham Greene: A Study of His Major Novels explores the persistent strain of humanism—La Condition Humanitie—The Estate of Man, that obtains in all his novels, whether the ostensible theme is politics or withdrawal from politics, religion or withdrawal from religion. The book unravels an inclusive critical analysis of the most significant and controversial aspects of Greene’s fiction and establishes Greene as a significant proponent of a new trend in literature, a trend which decidedly moves in the direction of existentialist thinking. The book establishes Greene as the ‘ultimate twentieth century chronicler of consciousness and anxiety’, exploring the doubtfulness of modern man and ambivalent normal or political issues in a contemporary setting. It makes visible the private universe of Greene—the universe of pity, of sin and salvation, of the cult of the sanctified sinner, the question of commitment and of the world of broken trust.

Graham Greene: A Study of His Major Novels remains a comprehensive study of this most widely read 20th century novelist who never fails to engross our complete attention in each successive novel, where he edifies as well as entertains. It will undoubtedly prove valuable to the students and researchers of English literature.

Sunita Sinha has been teaching at Women’s College, Samastipur, Bihar, for the past fifteen years. She has a brilliant academic career, securing the first position in M.A. (English) from Patna University. Her areas of interest are Indian Literature, British Literature and Canadian Literature. She has worked on Graham Greene for her doctoral degree. She has written many scholarly papers and poems which have been published in different renowned journals and books. She has also participated in many national and international seminars and conferences.