Greene describes the complex protagonist, Henry Scobie, as a "weak man with good intentions doomed by his big sense of pity." He adds, "the character of Scobie was intended to show that pity can be the expression of an almost monstrous pride." Surprisingly, Greene actually considered The Heart of the Matter to be a failure, even though readers and critics have never agreed. However, Greene chose not to name the West African colony in which the novel takes place. Green based The Heart of the Matter on his experiences in Sierra Leone as a member of the British Secret Service during World War II.
Additionally, Anthony Burgess lauded Greene's ability to "encapsulate the essence of an exotic setting in a single book." The novel explores themes of pity, suffering, religion, and responsibility. The Heart of the Matter has remained immensely popular over the past several decades because it is profoundly insightful and intellectually rigorous.
Critics consider it to be part of Greene's "Catholic Triology" alongside The Power and the Glory (1940) and The End of the Affair (1951). The Heart of the Matter (1948) is one of Graham Greene's most famous novels.
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