While on the surface destruction and creation seem to be polar opposites, they are actually deeply rooted together and tend to go hand in hand. This idea is clearly supported by a newsreel clip “London Can Take It”, which is a propaganda video that was shown to boost the spirits of the people of London during bombings. This idea is also heavily focused on and shown through a short story written by Graham Greene. The obliteration of Old Misery’s house in this short story titled,“The Destructors” demonstrates that destruction is a form of creation.
Old Misery’s house is the epitome of the past. The staircase as well as the paneling in the house are 200 years old. The house was built by a famous architect. In the time that the story takes place, architects are too becoming a thing of the past, as people don't care about the quality or appearance of the buildings that are created. Most of all, the house is the one of few to have survived the first blitz, a series of bombings in London. It is all that is left of the past, and it keeps Old Misery just there. He …show more content…
The boys grew up seeing pieces of their towns and cities obliterated in the blink of an eye. They take no interest in knowing that the house was built by the most famous architect in England,“‘Wren built that house, father says.’ ‘Who’s Wren?’ ‘The man who built St. Paul's.’ ‘Who cares?’ Blackie said. ‘It’s only Old Misery’s’”(Greene 50). This shows how the past doesn’t really mean much to the boys. To them, the past has literally been blown up, it’s not supposed to exist anymore. So when T. sees all of the past contained in this house, his first reaction is to destroy it. However, whether T. understands this or not, they did not only destroy something, they also created, “Streaks of light came in through the closed shutters were they worked with the seriousness of creators- and destruction after all is a form of creation.”(Greene