The Deadliest Tool

             The most valuable tool in all wars is not that who has the best technology, men, cause or weapons. The best weapon ever conceived is not one of mass destruction or of pinpoint accuracy. This is the weapon of deception. This weapon is the one element in a decision of a battle, conflict, and person to person engagements and so forth. Throughout the story of An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge, the author, Ambrose Bierce uses this most effective weapon, in character and out of character. In this story, the main character Peyton Farquhar is the victim of deception in one instance that cost him dearly, his life.
             First, Bierce gets us the setting of Owl Creek Bridge by presenting us with the actions of a hanging of a Southern gentlemen by Federal troops during the War Between the States. The opening scenes put us in the middle of things, namely the hanging. His is crime unknown to the readers. With the subsequent military ceremonies and rights, the middle-aged Southern gentleman known as Mr. Farquhar is about to be hanged. Then, Bierce grabs the reader's attention!
             Second, Bierce then takes us back to explain Mr. Farquhar's situation and actions that led him to his crime. In the preceding days, a supposed Confederate calvary unit stopped by Mr. Farquhar's house while he and his wife were resting on the front porch. The officer rode up and asked for a drink of water. Mr. Farquhar, being a Southern supporter, gladly granted him his request. While his wife went to go fetch some water, the Confederate embarked on presenting Mr. Farquhar with an idea that would deceive him. The idea being that the Federals held an important bridge, but lightly guarded and the destruction of this bridge would prove beneficial to the Confederate cause. The army officer, who was really a Federal Scout, knowing the devotion of Mr. Farquhar to the South, planted a thought of deception into Farquhar's mind that he would act upon.
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The Deadliest Tool. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 01:49, March 29, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/73482.html