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. We then get an inside look at one of the gang’s meetings and we see that with no real approval from the group, the new member named “T” is taking lead of the weak minded in the group and becoming the new alpha male. The completely destructed setting creates a picture of brokenness and the product of chaos and is a symbol in itself of destruction. Clearly the setting has a depressing and negative effect on the gang and also “Old Misery”, the old man who owned the leaning house. With such a broken setting the reader is prepared for even more brokenness and more specifically destruction. In the same manner of “The Destructors”, the setting of “The Most Dangerous Game” is masterfully created. The opening sentence makes the reader want to know more and keep reading the story. “Off there to the right, there’s a large island…It’s rather a mystery”. We see that the two men are on their way to a Jaguar hunt, and are on a yacht in the middle of the night. The conversation that is heard between Whitney and Rainsford reveals the entire meaning of the story. Whitney states that the hunted Jaguars must experience real fear while Rainsford denies this idea and enjoys mindless hunting. The creepiness of the setting begins when the name of the mysterious island is revealed to be called “the ship trap” according to “the old maps”. The reality of a possible incident begins to set in when Connell writes, “But even you can’t see four miles on a moonless Caribbean night.” The protagonist “Rainsford” then adds, “Nor four yards. Ugh, it’s like moist black velvet”. With the darkness so thick like black velvet, the setting is symbolic of evil, the unknown and fear. It is not only symbolic, but also seemingly real. Any person who has spent time on the water at night knows the eeriness that can intrude when darkness shrouds visibility. Once Rainsford falls off the boat and makes his way onto the island, traverses through the jungle and arrives at the compound of antagonist General Zaroff, the setting changes from mysterious and eerie to dark and ominous. This setting symbolizes the fear that this story is based upon. While this setting is seemingly real, there is a fantasy-like element that is present. I think Connell uses this fantasy like setting on the island to focus on the meaning of the story rather than to depict it as a real place. The characterization that is present in “the Destructors” is tremendously used to depict the meaning of the story. We see the two primary member’s of the gang, Blackie and T. Blackie is the leader of the group and is not a nice kid. When Old Misery tries to offer Blackie some chocolates, he sees it as an act of bribery to get the gang to stop bouncing balls off the side of his house. He then gathers the gang to bounce the ball all morning one day, and only does this to show that the gang does what they want, when they want and simply out of spite. “T” is said to have had “every reason to be an object of mockery”. His dad was a former architect and present clerk who had “come down in the world”, while his mother was a snobby woman who thought her family was better than the all of the neighbor’s families. This kind of parental influence develops a bitter young man whose outlook on life is extremely negative. The Character of Mr. Thomas or “old misery” is one of a man who would not accept defeat and walked with his head high. He is described as mean, but more understood than mean. He and his house are symbolic of the higher society that the boys were unable to be a part of. Because of the alleged differences between the boys and old misery, the boys became destructors. This story symbolizes the dangers of society when things are valued more than the community around them. Similarly to “The Destructors”, “The Most Dangerous Game” uses the characters in itself to fully portray the message of the story. Rainsford is a man who is a great hunter who even General Zaroff has heard about and admires as a hunter. He is depicted as a hunter who does not feel that the hunted feels anything while it is being hunted. He says, “They (jaguars) have no understanding…This hot weather is making you soft”. This is almost a willing ignorance to the reality that animals must feel while being hunted and chased. The character of Ivan is a hard, cold and ruthless man who is the enforcer for his boss, General Zaroff who depicts the mortal reality that there is no escaping from the island. General Zaroff seems to be an elite man who is untouchable, and fearless. In insatiable appetite for hunting, General Zaroff rationalizes hunting humans on his island as the ultimate game to hunt. He says, “life is for the strong, to be lived by the strong, and if need be, taken by the strong”. The General symbolizes and personifies fear, while Rainsford initially symbolizes willing blindness to the fear of the hunted and transitions into understanding exactly how the jaguar must feel while it is hunted. There is a similarity between Rainsford’s initial viewpoint and General Zaroff’s viewpoint on hunting and quenching their thirst for blood and the hunt. No doubt the characterization in this story reveals the true meaning of the story. Without the development of these characters, the meaning of the story would be far less significant. In conclusion, the use of setting and characterization in “The Destructors” and “The Most Dangerous Game” masterfully communicate the true meaning of the text. The authors of these two short stories completely understood the magnetism that is created by the use of setting and the incredibly deep understanding of who the characters are and why they act the way they act with the use of characterization. These elements of the short story fiction are invaluable in the development of the story and really the success of the story and the effective communication of the story’s meaning.