Famous author Earl Nightingale once said; "Our environment, the world in which we live and work, is a mirror of our attitudes and expectations". This is apparent in the short story "The Destructors" by Graham Greene. Set in post World War II England, the short story centers on a gang of adolescents who decide to demolish an aged man's house. The adolescents who prefer calling themselves the Wormsley Common Gang, meet everyday in an area that is heavily bombed during "The Blitz" attack . Nearly everything in this area is wiped out except one house with minimum harm which is owned by Mr. Thomas. Growing up in an destructive environment causes them to commit devastating crimes. Although there are many components that bring forth human behavior; the setting, jealousy and the ambition of having fame are the primary causes in influencing a destructive behavior in the younger generations.
The hostile environment is one of the factors that influence the boys of the Wormsley Common Gang to be aggressive. They witness destruction everyday and meet every morning at "the site of the last bomb of the first blitz" (2). In particular, not only do the boys of the gang are brought up in the war years, they live in an situation that serves as an constant message of the frightening experience of war. For this reason they plan on a destructive scheme which is provoked by the tragic post war setting pressuring their behavior to cause offensive actions. Furthermore, the leader on the Wormsley Common Gang, Blackie is one of the bystanders of the blitz attack "when he was an year old"(2). The town where the boys of the gang live is in ruins and rubble from bombings. Children and teenagers growing up in this catastrophic environment are unfortunately greatly impacted by their environment. The boys of the gang value violence as they are used to seeing destruction; corrupting their thoughts so they destroy the house that survive the bomb attack.