Our Man In Havana

Often times, it is the where and when that determines the what and why in a plot or story. The setting is the sole reason for why characters act the way they do or even why they exist within the plot. Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene illustrates this notion by making the setting such an intricate and irreplaceable piece of the plotline. Graham Greene uses the primary setting of Havana, Cuba as well as specific settings such as the current time in James Wormold’s life to form the storyline of Our Man in Havana. Our Man in Havana takes place in Havana, Cuba under the regime of Bautista. This is a dangerous place and possible enemy to Great Britain and other western powers in the early stages of the Cold War. Greene had foresight to represent Cuba as an enemy of Great Britain, which they indirectly would be under the leadership of Fidel Castro just a few years later. The Chief of the Secret Service expresses this to Hawthorne, stating, “Havana could be a
key-spot. The Communists always go where there’s trouble…” (Greene 45). If Wormold had still lived in Great Britain, or had he resided in the United States, or any western ally for that matter, the plot would have been drastically different. There would have been no need to have a spy in friendly territory. The fact that Our Man in Havana is set in Cuba allows the rest of the events, which revolve around James Wormold working for the British Secret Service as a spy. Setting is commonly described as the location of a scene, but rarely the time in which it exists.
That being said, the time in James Wormold’s life that Hawthorne approaches him is critical to his accepting of the espionage job and the remainder of the plot. Wormold is a divorced father who cares deeply about pleasing his sixteen-year-old daughter, Milly. He wants to keep her close to him, especially in this stage in her life, when men like Captain Segura are pursuing her. Wormold needs to spend a great fortune on Milly in order to do this. She says to him, “What about the Country Club? It’s the only place where I can get any real riding, and we aren’t members. What’s the good of a horse in a stable? Of course Captain Segura is a member, but I knew you wouldn’t want me to depend on him.” (Greene 40). Therein lies, Wormold’s sate. He has to spend great sums of money to keep Milly close to him and away from other men. This is what convinced him to take the job from Hawthorne and develop the rest of the
novel. Havana, Cuba provides the need for a British spy in the novel. The state of James Wormold’s life, in which he needs more money to please his daughter, Milly, causes him to accept the job from Hawthorne. Graham Greene’s use of both of the aforementioned settings in Our Man in Havana changed the relationship or even existence of characters, and therefore the plotline.