This novel raises some important questions about morality, loyalty, and ethics. It also reveals a great deal about the background of the hero Blackford Oakes. The reader learns about his experiences in British boarding school, his activity as a war hero and his subsequent indoctrination into the C.I.A.

1. Buckley says that, "Often, the main purpose of 'humanitarian' groups was to relieve themselves of effective concern for those who have suffered."

Why do you think that he says that?

Do you agree or disagree? Why or Why not?

2. Anthony Trust is Oakes's oldest friend but Oakes admits that Anthony has a quality that is difficult to describe. What quality is this? Why does Oakes find it so difficult to describe? Is there any irony...