Other People’s Darkness : Difficult empathy and villains in two novels by Graham Greene

Abstract: The thesis aims to mesh narrative theory with theory of empathy in a study of two novels by Graham Greene, A Gun for Sale (1936) and Brighton Rock (1938), where the use of narrative building blocks from the crime thriller genre and the empathy that the characters may evoke are analysed. The second aim is to discuss how to implement the rather complex works of Graham Greene in the EFL classroom. The key analytical devices for this essay are narratology and empathy, particularly difficult empathy. Narrative scaffolding helps students to discern recurring themes, character types and functions different in narratives, thus enabling them to transfer reading experiences to other texts as well. This thesis argues that Greene’s A Gun for Sale and Brighton Rock are useable in the EFL classroom, not despite, but because their great complexity, as discussions of difficult empathy in villainous characters and moral dilemmas will help develop fundamental values such as empathy and understanding of others, thus widening students’ understanding of both different kinds of literature and the world in which they live.