The Destructors

by

Graham Greene

Blackie is a fifteen-year-old boy who leads the Wormsley Common Gang up to and after T.’s brief time as leader. Blackie takes his leadership responsibilities seriously and wants the best for the gang. Blackie’s character evolves as his relationship with T. does. At first he sees promise in T.’s way of carrying himself, but has his reservations as to whether T. will share the group’s values despite his upper class roots. Later, Blackie is briefly jealous of T. after T. takes over leadership of the gang, but quickly comes to see that T.’s vision for destroying the house promises to bring the gang more prestige than any of his schemes would have because it reflects an even more profound rebellion against ideas of class. This realization inspires his respect for T., and ensures his loyalty at the moment when the rest of the gang turns on T.

Blackie Quotes in The Destructors

The The Destructors quotes below are all either spoken by Blackie or refer to Blackie. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Class and a Changing World Theme Icon
).
Part 1 Quotes

The gang met every morning in an impromptu car-park, the site of the last bomb of the first blitz. The leader, who was known as Blackie, claimed to have heard it fall, and no one was precise enough in his dates to point out that he would have been one year old and fast asleep on the down platform of Wormsley Common Underground Station.

Related Characters: Blackie
Page Number: 7
Explanation and Analysis:

He was just, he had no jealousy, he was anxious to retain T. in the gang if he could. It was the word 'beautiful' that worried him - that belonged to a class world that you could still see parodied at the Wormsley Common Empire by a man wearing a top hat and a monocle, with a haw-haw accent. He was tempted to say, 'My dear Trevor, old chap,' and unleash his hell hounds.

Related Characters: Trevor, or “T.”, Blackie
Related Symbols: Top Hat
Page Number: 10
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 2 Quotes

'Of course I don't hate him,' T. said. 'There'd be no fun if I hated him.' The last burning note illuminated his brooding face. 'All this hate and love,' he said,' it's soft, it’s hooey. There's only things, Blackie,' and he looked round the room crowded with the unfamiliar shadows of half things, broken things, former things. 'I’ll race you home, Blackie,' he said.

Related Characters: Trevor, or “T.” (speaker), Blackie, Mr. Thomas, or “Old Misery”
Page Number: 16
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 3 Quotes

T. stood with his back to the rubble like a boxer knocked groggy against the ropes. He had no words as his dreams shook and slid. Then Blackie acted before the gang had time to laugh, pushing Summers backward. 'I'll watch the front, T.,' he said, and cautiously he opened the shutters of the hall.

Related Characters: Blackie (speaker), Trevor, or “T.”, Summers
Page Number: 18
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Destructors LitChart as a printable PDF.
The Destructors PDF

Blackie Quotes in The Destructors

The The Destructors quotes below are all either spoken by Blackie or refer to Blackie. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Class and a Changing World Theme Icon
).
Part 1 Quotes

The gang met every morning in an impromptu car-park, the site of the last bomb of the first blitz. The leader, who was known as Blackie, claimed to have heard it fall, and no one was precise enough in his dates to point out that he would have been one year old and fast asleep on the down platform of Wormsley Common Underground Station.

Related Characters: Blackie
Page Number: 7
Explanation and Analysis:

He was just, he had no jealousy, he was anxious to retain T. in the gang if he could. It was the word 'beautiful' that worried him - that belonged to a class world that you could still see parodied at the Wormsley Common Empire by a man wearing a top hat and a monocle, with a haw-haw accent. He was tempted to say, 'My dear Trevor, old chap,' and unleash his hell hounds.

Related Characters: Trevor, or “T.”, Blackie
Related Symbols: Top Hat
Page Number: 10
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 2 Quotes

'Of course I don't hate him,' T. said. 'There'd be no fun if I hated him.' The last burning note illuminated his brooding face. 'All this hate and love,' he said,' it's soft, it’s hooey. There's only things, Blackie,' and he looked round the room crowded with the unfamiliar shadows of half things, broken things, former things. 'I’ll race you home, Blackie,' he said.

Related Characters: Trevor, or “T.” (speaker), Blackie, Mr. Thomas, or “Old Misery”
Page Number: 16
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 3 Quotes

T. stood with his back to the rubble like a boxer knocked groggy against the ropes. He had no words as his dreams shook and slid. Then Blackie acted before the gang had time to laugh, pushing Summers backward. 'I'll watch the front, T.,' he said, and cautiously he opened the shutters of the hall.

Related Characters: Blackie (speaker), Trevor, or “T.”, Summers
Page Number: 18
Explanation and Analysis: