"The Last Word" is a

dystopian A dystopia (from Ancient Greek δυσ- "bad, hard" and τόπος "place"; alternatively cacotopiaCacotopia (from κακός ''kakos'' "bad") was the term used by Jeremy Bentham in his 1818 Plan of Parliamentary Reform (Works, vol. 3, p. 493). ...

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

by the author

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading English novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquir ...

, written in 1988 (see

1988 in literature This article contains information about the literary events and publications of 1988. Events * March 7 – Nine thousand movie and television writers of the Writers' Guild of America go on strike a day after rejecting a final offer from produc ...

). It first appeared in ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' but can also be found in collections of his short fiction, notably the Penguin edition of ''The Last Word and Other Stories'', for which it is the lead story. The story, written toward the end of Greene's life, reflects his frustration at the declining influence of religion, particularly

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, in the modern world. "The Last Word" is Greene's final short story, before his death from

leukaemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...

in 1991.

Plot summary

The story revolves around the last Pope, John XXIX, who was overthrown more than twenty years earlier with the establishment of a new

world government World government is the concept of a single political authority with jurisdiction over all humanity. It is conceived in a variety of forms, from tyrannical to democratic, which reflects its wide array of proponents and detractors. A world gove ...

under General Megrim. The pope is now a frail old man, who lives in obscurity under a moderate form of house arrest, ignored by his neighbours and forbidden to keep any religious items. All he has left is a book, possibly a Bible, that he has managed to hide, and a crucifix with an arm broken off. He is already feeble-minded and has forgotten most of his past, and the world has forgotten him as well—when the concierge at a hotel is told that he is the pope, he answers, "The Pope? What's the Pope?" When the Pope was toppled, there was an attempt to assassinate him, but this failed, and it was afterwards decided not to make him a martyr to the few surviving Christians. Since then, Christianity has been eradicated, and the Pope is now the last surviving Christian. In the story, the Pope is flown for a formal meeting with the General, the new leader of the new world order. After many long years, it is a formal meeting, much publicized in the world press. The Pope's robes and even his papal ring are restored to him from the World Museum of Myths, and he is forced to don them for the occasion, faintly remembering earlier days when they were his normal attire. At 11:30 am sharp, he is taken to meet the general, who reminds him that he is "The last Pope, but still a Pope," and therefore still a threat. The general places a gun on the table and offers him an opportunity to

die with dignity Dignified death, death with dignity, dying with dignity or dignity in dying is an ethical concept that refers to the end-of-life process avoiding suffering and maintaining control and autonomy. In general, it is usually treated as an extension of t ...

, "The last Christian. This is a moment of history." After many long years of isolation, this is a relief to the Pope. The two men share a glass of wine before the execution is to take place. His last words, before he is shot, are ''Corpus domini nostri''...The first words of "." ('May the Body of our Lord Jesus Christ preserve your soul to everlasting life.') Greene ends the story by reflecting on the General's concern that Christianity may be abandoned and its last believers persecuted, but that somehow the faith will survive. Even after performing the execution himself, the General is plagued by the doubt, "...is it possible that what this man believed may be true?" Even religion's greatest enemies, Greene is saying, still live with the question of what if they are wrong, and as long as the slightest doubt remains, Christianity will survive. Even though he is frustrated by the modern world's scepticism, he believes that that very scepticism may yet be what keeps Christianity alive.

Plot summary

References

See also