Examples Of Words Over Weapons In Tom Sawyer By Mark Twain

Words Over Weapons Words hold more power than weapons. Consider this, if someone asks another person kindly to do something that is a reasonable task, they are fairly likely to do what they were asked. However, if they demand it be done, or use force in asking for the completion of the task, the person of whom it was requested of is much less likely to do it, or do the task happily. Violent means may force people to do things, but they will never make them truly want to do what they are being made to do, or do the task happily. Words work together with willpower and convince people while violence doesn’t give any choices. Using words, people can be persuaded to find solutions without violence, shown love in powerful ways, and taught

Most everyone can agree that war has a destructive impact anywhere it occurs, and even the word itself has a negative connotation. War is not the best way to settle a disagreement. Once weapons are used, all hope of compromise tends to disappear. It becomes an absolute decision made by the side that wins the conflict by force. However, if words are used to create an agreement that benefits both sides, peace can be reached. One such example of this is in the book Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. In this book, there is a scene where Tom’s aunt asks him to whitewash the fence. Being a young, independent boy, he does not want to do this task, but then he gets an idea. A boy walks by and begins to talk with Tom. He asks Tom if what he is doing is work, and he responds, “ ‘Well maybe it is and maybe it ain’t. All I know, is, it suits Tom Sawyer’ ” (Twain 18). The boy responds, “Oh, come now, you don’t mean to let on that you like it?’ ” (Twain 18). And Tom says, “ ‘Like it? Well I don’t see why I ought’nt to like it. Does a boy get a chance to whitewash a fence every day?’ ” (Twain 18). The conversation continues, and the boy begins asking if he can try for a little bit. After Tom says he shouldn’t a few times, he ends up letting the boy do so in exchange for his apple. He does the same thing with a few other children, by convincing them that the work is actually a privilege, and thus getting them to do what he wants. Another example where

As people grow, they learn how completely untrue this saying really is and how in fact, the opposite is the reality of life. People may be able to be hurt physically, but mental and emotional wounds made by harsh words hurt longer and do not often heal the way our physical ailments do. For example, if a child falls and scrapes her knee, she will cry for a bit, but once it is washed off and covered with a band-aid, she quickly returns to play happily. But, if the same child has a friend who tells her that she cannot play with them, or says that she is ugly, she may not be as easily healed as the scrape was with the band-aid, because there is no band-aid for the mind. The difference in damage between these two scenarios becomes clearer as children grow older. Nowadays bullying is a lot less physical push and shove. It comes in the form of mean words, and unpleasant conversations as well as exclusion. These blows hit deeper than any punch or kick could, and they do not always fade with time. One book that describes just how hurtful words can be is Odd Girl Out, a book that looks at aggression in girls in society, by Rachel Simmons. Simmons looks at how mean words can stick with someone even after many years. Simmons herself was bullied in eighth grade by another girl named Abby who talked behind her back, and convinced