In Graham Greene's short story, The Destructors, the setting plays a key role in the story. Everywhere that the boys go is destroyed by the ravages of World War II in England. In turn, the setting becomes a symbol for the brokenness of the boys, too. The damage that they do is the damage that they are inflicting on themselves, and the belief that there is no good and bad, just things. This is evident when they burn the money that they find in the mattress.
