A Counterfeit Fifty Dollar BillIn "The Fifty Dollar Bill" written by Donald Hall, the narrator of the story seems to be an honest man, but is he really one? ? I think for the most part he's very honest - except when he didn't want to be drafted and so he bribed his congressman. He had several reasons for wanting to be exempt from the project. He was always honest, until he realized he had something important that could be lost. The very beginning of the story begins with the narrator telling us (the readers) about his honesty. He talks about how he is respected both in his profession and in the community where respect “does not come easily” (Hall 957). He says that since he is a lawyer, it is difficult to gain respect. He tells us about all the things he never did: “I never asked the judge who is my best friend to ticket my alcohol dealer's son. I have never promised a detective a favor to hide unfavorable evidence. to my client” (957). He makes it his duty to make us believe that he is honest. When he talks about other lawyers, he says that they “live intimately with dishonesty” (957). This statement implies that he can't stand being dishonest, or at least doesn't "live on intimate terms" with dishonesty. However, the final statement of the first paragraph, "I consider myself an honest man," doesn't really give the impression that he means what he says. He says, “I consider myself an honest man,” not “I am an honest man.” If the narrator was so concerned with being honest, what reason might he have had for trying to bribe the congressman? He had a lot to deal with when the draft rumors swirled. The narrator was a third year law student. He only had one year left before he graduated. His wife was pregnant and about to have their first child. These two things were very important to him and he couldn't risk losing them. Not only that, but he feared his own death. He had a "repeated sequence in his mind" in which he continued to see his own death. The dream not only happened while he was sleeping, he also saw his death while he was awake..