A Life of Lies: The Facts and Fiction of Espionage

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Espionage has always been a subject that has captured the thoughts and imaginations of many people. The idea of the glamorous life of espionage agents and spies with grand parties, high tech gadgets, and world destroying villains have led to the belief that spies live a life of adventure and almost science fiction. Real agents live far from that life in reality. Many live in constant fear of imprisonment or execution. The facts and fiction of espionage have become distorted overtime.
Espionage has been used by countries and empires for many thousands of years in varying forms. In ancient times, the writings of Sun-Tzu and Chanakya outlined how to use espionage for gain in a war or in military operations. Chandragupta was a military leader who made use of Chanakya’s writing. In modern times, espionage has been used to varying extents and forms (Wikipedia, 2). For many years, espionage was a very male dominated occupation. It was not until World War II that women started to be hired as espionage agents. Men realized that women could go where they could not and soon it was realized the importance that women could be to intelligence operations (Spievogel, 601). Espionage was used the heaviest during the Cold War. The Soviet Union and their allies sought as much information about the activities of the United States and their allies. In recent times, espionage has been used in a type of espionage called industrial espionage. Companies will try to gather information about their competitors. This costs companies to lose billions of dollars each year. Espionage has recently focused on the illegal drug trade and threats of terrorism (Wikipedia, 2).
Espionage is an occupation and activity that is carried out by agents who have different ...

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...e is a severely misunderstood profession. The facts were tainted over the years to make movies and literature more enjoyable. Each passing year brings about new knowledge to the public about espionage. Some “facts” that are released must be thought and researched more on to make sure the fact isn’t fiction. One thing is for certain of spies and agents though. They live a tough life of lies.

Works Cited

“Espionage.” Wikipedia. 19 Jan. 2002.Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. 11 March 2014
.
Silverstein, Herma. Spies Among Us: The Truth About Modern Espionage. United States of
America: Moffa Press, Inc. 1988.
Spielvogel, Jackson J., Ph. D., World History: Modern Times. New York; McGraw Hill-
Glencoe, 2005
The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia
Britannica, n.d. Web. 19 Apr. 2014.

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