Opium is an evolving symbol throughout The Quiet American. In terms of Fowler’s character, opium symbolizes his cynical disconnection from the world. Since moving to Vietnam, Fowler has developed an addiction to opium. He smokes regularly, relying on Phuong to prepare pipes for him. As he explains to Alden Pyle during one of their longer conversations, Thomas Fowler feels alienated from modern society and believes that everyone should take an objective, detached view of the world. Opium, thanks to its narcotic properties, allows Fowler to do this in a more pronounced fashion. The drug literally numbs him to the world around him, so much so that he can barely feel whether Phuong is lying next to him in the bed. Opium symbolically demonstrates that Fowler’s cynical sense of detachment from the world is not just a passive feeling but one he actively pursues. He wants to numb himself to the world, and opium allows him to achieve this.

In contrast to Fowler’s active indulgence in narcotics, Pyle refuses to take opium, which symbolically differentiates him from Fowler. The jaded, cynical Fowler is trying to detach himself from a cruel and bitter world, but Pyle is a naive young optimist who believes that the world can be changed for the better.