Competition

The entire novel develops several different forms of competition. The first and most obvious is the various fishing tournaments in which most of the characters participate. These competitions require fishermen to venture alone onto a body of water to try to catch the largest fish they can before the appointed weigh-in time. Several times, Dickie Lockhart comes into the weigh station at the last minute and wins the competitions; Dennis Gault begins to suspect the man is cheating. In order to cheat, Gault believes that Dickie has someone catch large fish and place them in cages under the water in places where only Dickie can find them. It is difficult for anyone to prove that Dickie did this; in fact, it is never proven within the pages of the novel. However, Gault's desire to win against Dickie leads him to make these accusations and to have Dickie killed...