The Image Of Vietnam In The Quiet American

Graham Greene is a well-acclaimed English writer who exhibits sharp observations and keen insights in his works.The Quiet American is such a thought-provoking novel which prophetically unveils the upcoming Vietnam War and predicts the American imperialism is doomed to fail worldwide.In the novel,Greene with his deft descriptions precisely reveals the intricate rivalries among new and old colonists,and vividly records the brutal sight of the battles between Vietnamese and the French.Under such circumstances,Greene depicts his image of Vietnam in the novel.Though under-characterized,the image of Vietnam still attracts readers' attention,making them eager to explore more details about the mysterious East.It reveals part of the reality in Vietnam both inside and outside the story.Moreover,Greene's incisive view on America's intervention in Vietnam is profoundly prophetic which makes The Quiet American occupies an important place in literature till today.This thesis,by analyzing the image of Vietnam,aims to explain from the perspective of post-colonialism the reason that Vietnam becomes "the other" on the "Greeneland" and explore the underlying values that enable Greene to depict such an image of Vietnam.This thesis consists of five chapters in all.Chapter One provides an introduction of Greene's life and works,reviews the critical reception of Graham Greene since the 1960s,introduces studies both home and abroad on Greene,puts forward the purpose of the present thesis,and states the layout of the thesis.Chapter Two centers on the image of Vietnam in the novel,pointing out the contradictory attitude the author hold toward Vietnam:on one hand Greene inevitably discloses a sense of superiority since he bears the imprint of western ideology;on the other hand he shows his sympathy for Vietnamese due to his special experience as a journalist.Chapter Three,from the perspective of Said's Orientalism,explores the hidden values behind the construction of the image of Vietnam and the post-colonial thoughts revealed in the novel:Vietnamese,being deprived of discourse right,turn into "the other" who is silent and subordinate.Chapter Four,with the introduction of cultural hegemony,further argues that it is the Eurocentrism that Greene holds to when he depicts the image of Vietnam.Even The Quiet American itself is in fact an expression and continuation of cultural hegemony over the East.Chapter Five is conclusion.The conclusion points out that even though Greene expresses his sympathy for the Vietnamese in the novel,the image of Vietnam still cannot break away with stereotyped image of the East in colonial times due to the post-colonial ideology and western cultural hegemony that roots deep in Greene.