The Day of the Jackal Essay Example For Students

The Day of the Jackal Essay The Day of the Jackal:This book, a suspenseful narrative by Frederick Forsyth had its origin by means of the observations he made as a Reuters correspondent in Paris. The basics of this plot are very simple, one man wants to kill de Gaulle, and another man wants to stop him. The Day of the Jackal begins as Charles de Gaulles grants Algeria their independence, by means of this decision he creates a certain political tension in France. To avenge what they regard as a betrayal, leaders of the OAS (Organisation de lArmee Secrete) plot de Gaulles death. After several attempts on de Gaulles life all resulting in failure, the OAS decides it is time to hire a killer at the top of his profession, a man known as the Jackal. He is a tall, blond Englishman with opaque, gray eyes. A man, whose mission is so secret not even his employers know his name, an assassin with a contract to kill Charles de Gaulle, the worlds most heavily guarded man. Although the Jackal is not aware, his main obstacle is a simple policeman, Deputy Commissaire Claude Lebel. Some consider him among the best detectives in France, but he himself cannot feel much confidence due to the fact of knowing that his objective is to track down a killer that has no identity what so ever. But the assistance given to Lebel from police all over the world, slowly allows him to piece together the Jackals image in time to prevent this international incident. In this book we follow the Jackals meticulous planning step by step. The intelligence of the Jackal leaves me perplexed, the way he is able to avoid being captured and how he devises his brilliant plan by means of theft of passaports, forgery of documents and a great alternation of identities. All in all, The Day of the Jackal is a masterpiece of suspense.