The Basement Room by Graham Greene
"The Basement Room" by Graham Greene is a poignant short story that explores the complexities of childhood innocence, fear, and the gradual understanding of adult realities. The narrative centers on seven-year-old Philip Lane, who is left in the care of his family's butler, Baines, and housekeeper, Mrs. Baines, while his parents go on holiday. Philip finds himself drawn to Baines, whose adventurous tales capture his imagination, in stark contrast to his fear of Mrs. Baines, who embodies the darker aspects of adulthood.
As Philip navigates the house, particularly the basement room that symbolizes the divide between the child’s innocent world and adult complexities, he begins to confront themes of betrayal, love, and the moral dilemmas entwined in human relationships. His interactions with Baines and Mrs. Baines reveal a deeper understanding of fear and coercion, as well as the illusion of joy that can be threatened by darker forces. The story culminates in a tragic incident that forces Philip to face the harsh realities of trust and responsibility, leaving a lasting impact on his psyche. Ultimately, Philip grapples with the burdens of love and the consequences of adult choices, leading him to a life marked by emotional withdrawal and unresolved questions about his past.
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The Basement Room by Graham Greene
First published: 1935
Type of plot: Psychological
Time of work: The 1930's
Locale: London
Principal Characters:
Philip Lane , seven years old, who loves BainesBaines , the butlerMrs. Baines , the housekeeperEmmy , the girl Baines introduces to Philip as his niece
The Story
Left by his parents in the care of their butler and housekeeper, seven-year-old Philip Lane excitedly anticipates exploring the large Belgravia house while learning something about the adult world. Philip loves Baines, the butler, whose adventurous tales about Africa entrance him, but he dislikes and fears Mrs. Baines, whose very presence terrifies him in the same way that the demons that people his nightmares do.
Once his parents leave the house on their holiday, Philip seeks out Baines in the basement room, entered through a green baize door that separates the family rooms from the servants' quarters. In the basement room, Philip's fear and dislike of Mrs. Baines are reaffirmed as he watches Baines efface himself in her presence. Philip begins to appreciate the conflicting claims of adulthood in a world he yearns for yet fears to enter. He begins to understand fear and coercion and to intuit the meaning of evil. He suspects that undiluted joy, his feeling for Baines, can be threatened by the very presence of those such as Mrs. Baines.
Philip asks Baines to take him for a walk, but Mrs. Baines interferes. The boy escapes alone into the world beyond the Belgravia mansion rather than witness their disharmony. Too timid to venture far, he begins to retrace his steps. In a tea shop he sees Baines, not the cowering individual he recently left but a concerned and affable lover pressing jars of discarded cosmetics, rescued and then rejected by Mrs. Baines from the upstairs rooms in the process of housecleaning, on a young and unattractive girl. Philip thinks that it would be amusing to intrude on Baines and his "niece" in Mrs. Baines's voice. He invades their moment of happiness, returning them to reality with a fearful thud. Baines introduces Philip to Emmy, offers him a cake with pink icing, and asks him to keep Emmy a secret from Mrs. Baines.
Later, in the nursery, Mrs. Baines manages to trick Philip into revealing the secret he shares with Baines. She bribes him with a Meccano set. The pressures of adult responsibility invade his innocent sphere of love and trust, and he wonders about his place within the adult world. "Baines oughtn't to have trusted him; grown up people should keep their own secrets," he thinks. He betrays Baines by failing to tell him about Mrs. Baines's invasion of his dreams.
Mrs. Baines devises a simple plan to trap her husband and Emmy. She pretends to leave London to care for an ailing mother, then sends a telegram saying that she is delayed and will return the following day. Although she is gone, her presence pervades the house. Baines and Emmy and Philip spend a delightful day exploring London; that night, however, after Philip has been put to bed, Mrs. Baines comes once more into his room and confirms the reality of his nightmares. She again promises him a Meccano set if he will tell her where Baines and Emmy are. Terrified, Philip screams, then watches Baines grapple with Mrs. Baines on the landing. Philip sees her go over the banister "in a flurry of black clothes" and fall into the hall below.
Once again, Philip escapes into the world beyond the Belgravia house. He is found by the police, who learn of the "accident"' reported by Baines. They return him to the house.
In attempting to shield Emmy, Baines has moved the body from the hall into the basement room. When confronted by Mrs. Baines's death, Philip refuses Baines's mute plea to keep yet another secret. He has learned that to love is to accept the burden of trust in and responsibility for another, for which life has not yet prepared him. Philip extricates himself from Baines, from love and life. He dies sixty years later, still asking about the girl, Emmy, who had unwittingly unleashed fear into his innocent world and forced him to choose a life of lonely noninvolvement.