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Mind Of A Master In Edward Pierce's The Great Train Robbery

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Mind of a Master Audacious and masterful are both qualities possessed by Edward Pierce- the mastermind behind the greatest robbery of a moving train. In The Great Train Robbery, Pierce is seen as a masterful character. His planning of the robbery is meticulous as every detail is well thought out. He seeks out the best criminals in their “fields” in order to assist him in carrying out his plan. As well, Pierce’s arrogant and fearless nature provides the necessary qualities to attempt and ultimately achieve his goal. A well-calculated plan coupled with Pierce’s daring and arrogant nature allowed him to execute the perfect crime. In executing his carefully thought out plan, Pierce demonstrates a daring feat as he must climb on top of a moving train in order to reach the gold. “In that manner he hung suspended for several minutes while he twirled the padlock with a ring of picks, trying one betty after another” (Crichton 218). Not even suspending from a train with death looming was enough to make Pierce believe his goal was unattainable. …show more content…

This is noted when “Pierce had a moment of profound rage that this final step in the plan should be, in the end, the only thing to go irretrievably wrong. The fact that the error was entirely his own doing merely increased his fury” (222). Pierce’s arrogance is noted by his increased fury with himself in that the possibility of an error was his doing and not that of one of his cronies. By the end of the novel, Agar confessed to the robbery and incriminated Pierce. As Pierce was being apprehended, he greeted Agar amiably and stated, “Turned nose, did you?” with which Pierce replied, “Doesn’t matter, I’ve thought of this as well, you know.” (250). Once again, Pierce was able to demonstrate both his masterful ways and daring nature in his escape from

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