JOB #2
THINKING QUESTION
"Suddenly he heard a sharp report and something struck the water smartly within a few inches of his head, spattering his face with spray. He heard a second report, and saw one of the sentinels with his rifle at his shoulder, a light cloud of blue smoke rising from the muzzle. The man in the water saw the eye of the man on the bridge gazing into his own through the sights of the rifle. He observed that it was a grey eye and remembered having read that grey eyes were keenest, and that all famous marksmen had them. Nevertheless, this one had missed" (Chapter III). As I was reading the story, this odd little paragraph caught me by surprise. Prior to this, I have never even heard that grey eyes were the keenest and that all famous marksman had them. Is this rumor that Peyton Farquhar read even true? If so, how does eye color effect the quality of one's vision? If not, why does Farquhar think so? I look forward to hearing all of your thoughts.
It definitely sounds superstitious! Here's the text of an article from the August 17, 1918, issue of Sausalito News: "Men Having Gray Eyes Have Proven To Be Best Marksmen
ReplyDeleteGray-eyed men, says a Fort Worth correspondent, are the best marksmen. This has been proved after eight months' experience at the rifle range of Camp Bowie, and besides old army experts will tell you the same thing. When Capt. E. R. Breese was here giving his instruction in the use of the new rifle he said that proficiency in marksmanship usually ran according to the color of the eyes, men having gray being the best shots, gray-blue coming next, blue third, hazel fourth, brown fifth, and black sixth. Records show that soldiers whose eyes are light brown to black cannot shoot with accuracy at a distance greater than 500 yards and at 800 yards miss the target altogether. Even with different nations the color of the eyes has determined shooting ability. Nearly every Mexican has brown or black eyes and they-well, they are the poorest shots in the world." Thoughts, anyone?
Here's the link to that article: https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=SN19180817.2.31&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1
DeleteVery interesting, Braden. I wonder where Farquhar read that. Do you think that the way different eye colors reflect and absorb light could be the reason? Thank you for sending me the link to the article. I look forward to reading it.
DeleteThat is quite possible, Joshua. From the limited amount of reading i did on the subject today, I think that's highly probable.
DeleteThat's so interesting! I really like it when you can research certain topics to further understand it. Thanks Braden for the article!
DeleteOooo this is so interesting! I agree. When I read that paragraph, I wasn’t sure if I believed it. It seems like the color of eyes wouldn’t make a difference in good marksmanship. But I guess it does.
ReplyDeleteI also found it strange that Mexicans are considered to have the worst shooting ability. It doesn’t seem like it makes sense. And I don’t know if I’ve ever even seen someone with grey eyes. Or maybe I have and just considered them to be “blue”. Do any of you know of anyone with “grey” eyes??
ReplyDeleteApparently, it's possible that none of one know anyone with grey eyes, as it's very rare. I have done a little research and have found that less than 1% of people have grey eyes.
DeleteIn addition, grey eyes are unique in that depending on the lighting in which you see them, grey eyes can appear as blue or green. So it's also possible we have seen people with grey eyes and simply didn't know it!
I agree with Joshua: if I've met someone with gray eyes, I wasn't aware of it.
DeleteGreat question Joshua! I also thought that paragraph was kind of creepy. I wonder if the author just used grey eyes to symbolize something. Like when Mrs. Maurer was talking with us about colors and symbolism... I believe grey symbolized death. So maybe the author was trying to get his point across that those who have grey eyes kill or represent death that is coming? I don't know, it's just a thought. Grey eyes might not be scientifically proven to have better vision, but in this case I think it was maybe just a type of symbolism in the book. What do you think?
ReplyDeleteNice color connection between "The Red Badge of Courage" and "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge." It could be symbolism, Elsah, but I really don't know. In reality, Peyton Farquhar wouldn't have been able to see the sentinel's eye color unless he was really close, also hinting that this was a dream.
DeleteDo you think that the reason why both the Southern Confederate Farquhar and the Northern Union sentinel have grey eyes is to draw a connection between the two of them?
In other words, both the Confederacy (symbolized by Farquhar) and the Union (symbolized by this soldier or the soldiers) thought that what they were fighting for was right and the other side was wrong, and do you think that Ambrose Bierce was trying to point out that they are both the same, as both sides thought that "all was fair in love and war"?
Farquhar had grey eyes too?
DeleteYes, the third sentence of the second paragraph in Chapter I mentions that Peyton Farquhar had eyes that "were large and dark gray." It's easy to miss, but it is interesting that Bierce felt the need to mention that in the story.
DeleteMy Mom has blue eyes and can see really well in dark rooms. The doctor says it's because her eyes are light blue and let in more light. I don't know if that makes you better as a shooter.
ReplyDeleteOh that's an interesting thought Mercy! You are right though. It is the same reason why people with blue eyes sometimes get the "red" eyes in photos. The light gets let through more easily in blue eyes verses brown eyes. It is an interesting phenomenon to explore. I wonder if it does make you a better shooter! But I would suspect that other factors such as ability to remain still, etc. also play a role in the shooter.
DeleteYeah... I mean, the article was an old one... it could very well be totally wrong! And certainly, Elsah, eye color is not the only factor in shooting ability!
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