The Secret Agent

A “bespectacled, dingy little man” known as the Professor meets with Ossipon in a communist clubhouse (46). The Professor is a notorious bombmaker and explosives expert. Ossipon is much physically larger and more imposing than the Professor, yet Ossipon fears (and is envious of) the intensity and the sincerity of the Professor’s beliefs. Earlier in the day, a bomb blast in Greenwich Park killed the suspected bomber. The Professor and Ossipon discuss the attack. The Professor confesses that he was the maker of the bomb in question, which he made according to a request from Mr. Verloc. Ossipon jumps to the assumption that Verloc was the victim of the bombing. The Professor continues to talk, discussing the fact that his house is filled with bombs that are ready to use. He even carries a small explosive device at all times. If the police tried to arrest him, he reveals, he would not hesitate to blow both of them up. The detonator is located in a small rubber ball which he unconsciously, habitually squeezes throughout the day. The action comforts him, making him feel as though he is in control. While other revolutionaries are motivated by politics or ideology, the Professor is only really interested in destruction.