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Who Is Jones's Foil In A Few Good Men

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Chronologically, the audience meets Smithers, who acts as Jones’s foil, before Jones enters the scene. A foil contains many of the same character traits that are prominent in the protagonist, in this instance, those traits are: greed for money, pride, and a fear of death. However, the foil has an exaggerated trait that is opposite to the same trait in the main character. In this case, the key trait is what I would call swagger or an ability to make others feel comfortable around you even if you have ill intent. Smithers is a thin, drunk, keen man who puts everyone he meets on edge, because they can sense that he is trying to scam them in some way. Jones, on the other hand, keeps a cool head, is well-built, and has a can-do attitude that makes the …show more content…

Smithers knows something that Jones does not, that the natives uncovered his scam and plans to kill him tonight. As is his nature, Smithers tries to persuade Jones to tell him where is money is located and his plan so that he may get to it first. However, due to his opposite trait and lack of finesse, Jones immediately identifies what Smithers is trying to do. This is important because Jones’s key flaw comes out at this moment, his pride and greed. Jones tells Smithers his plan, where his money is hidden, where his extra provisions are hidden in the woods, and also that he previously killed a man to get his own way. Why does he foolishly give all this information away, when he is the better at scamming and persuading people to divulge information? Because of his pride and boastful nature, which Smithers does not possess as much. Smithers, when put into his place, is more humble and more careful about the information that he conveys to Jones. This adds suspense to the main plot of the story, even if it seems like Jones is simply being boastful and Smithers is being a

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