The foil is a thrusting weapon. The target area is the torso front and back. The limited target area on the body and the limited scoring part of the blade adds a new dimention to the game as the opponents try to get each other to expose an area to attack.
In foil and saber, there is a rule called 'right of way'. In basic terms, 'right of way' says that the opponent who attacks first gets the point. This means that if both fencers touch each other's target area at the same time, the opponent who was attacking gets the touch.
To understand the need for 'right of way' you can look at it from two different angles. Most sports have offense and defense. When you are playing defense you can't score points, but offense and defense changes rapidly in the game. The same is true with fencing. If my opponent is attacking, as soon as I defend myself, I am back on offense again.
For purists, who like the idea of real sword combat, 'right of way' also makes sense. Common battle field tactics would say that if someone is attacking me I should defend myself first before I attack them. Otherwise, I will most likely get hit.
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