Although The Quiet American has journeyed its way into Saigon, much of the primary focus of the novel speaks of the two main characters, Fowler and Pyle, and their struggle with the war. Phuong does not have a driving force within the novel nor is her character ever developed. She serves as a stereotypical “Asian women” character, who is both submissive and promiscuous with no display of emotion. As observed in the trailer, she has no line of dialogue and is described as an exotic beauty.

After doing some research on Greene, he is shown to be a serial adulterer who had sex with many women. This consideration taps into his character Phuong, who is seen merely as an object for sexual pleasure and serves no real purpose to the story.  

Like most novels involving Saigon, war has been a popular theme. Greene has intended this novel to be anti-war shown by how many innocent civilians have died due to the war, but none of them tap into the realistic portrayal of the lives of the people in Saigon. It is merely viewed from Greene’s observation during the time he served as a war correspondent in Vietnam.