Pyle, the dangerously innocent antagonist in Graham Greene's The Quiet American, wants to bring democracy to the people of Vietnam. That's not his problem. He gets into trouble because he tries to inject an easy remedy into a complex, bloody political and social conflict he doesn't understand. He analyzes the Indochina War from a lens that's made of little more than superficial slogans. No surprise, he quickly loses control of the situation and starts fires he can't begin to extinguish. The novel is something of a cautionary tale against thinking one has the solution to another country's problems.
Questions About Philosophical Viewpoint: Quick-Fix Democracy
- Why is York Harding's proposed solution to the Vietnamese conflict called a "Third Force"?
- Why do you think Pyle buys into Harding's ideas so unquestioningly?
- Is Fowler correct that Pyle will never learn to see the error in Harding's approach?
- What finally convinces Fowler to take sides against Pyle?
Chew on This
Fowler sides against Pyle primarily to stop the American from doing further mischief.
Fowler's chief motivation for siding against Pyle is personal: he's mostly miffed that Pyle stole Phuong from him.