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Character Analysis: An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge

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How death is perceived can be different for each person. The passage by Ambrose Bierce titled “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”, and “The Red Convertible” by Louise Erdrich are both great examples of how different authors can write about death. WHAT THE MAIN CHARACTERS EXPERIENCE ARE QUITE DIFFERENT FROM EACH OTHER, YET IN THE END THEY BOTH FIND PEACE. Bierce describes Peyton Farquhar (the main character in “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”) as a very humble man. When Peyton is standing at the bridge; the author describes how during the Civil War even the nicest of men may die. “The liberal military code makes provisions for hanging many kinds of persons, and gentleman are not excluded” (1). Peyton knows that there is no running when it comes to his death; this is not something that he can escape from. To prepare himself he tries to think of anything but dying. At the end of the fourth paragraph Bierce gives the reader the sense that time is slowing down, “A piece of dancing driftwood caught his attention and his eyes followed it down the current. …show more content…

That if he can free his hands, he will be able to escape and reach his family that is far beyond the Union’s borders (Bierce 2). This thought brings Peyton joy and hope after he once thought that he had non. The main character in “The Red Convertible” also comes to this joyous state after he goes on a trip with his younger brother. “‘You’re crazy too,’ I say, to jolly him up. ‘Crazy Lamartine boys!’ He looks as though he will take this the wrong way at first. His face twists, then clears, and he jumps up to his feet. ‘That’s right!’ he says. ‘Crazier ‘n hell. Crazy Indians!’ I think it’s the old Henry again” (Erdrich 313). Erdrich goes on to explain how Henry is doing this wild dance right before he jumps into the river (313). Although both characters come to this peaceful place each one gets their

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In the short story, “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”, written by Ambrose Bierce, he tells the story of white southerner during the American Civil War who has committed a crime against the Union and is punished to death by hanging. Throughout the short story Bierce takes us the readers on a journey through northern Alabama filled with suspense and foreshadowing. Through the entire short story Bierce uses many different types of foreshadowing to anticipate the fate of the main character. Bierce foreshadows the ending of the story in three ways, 1.) Peyton Farquhar’s heightened senses, 2.)

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Literary analysis of “An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge” Ambrose Bierce, the Author of “An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge” about a man who was being hanged, throughout the story Peyton hallucinates and thinks that he has escaped the hanging but in reality he’s dying. Bierce uses symbolism in “ An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” to foreshadow that Peyton is going to die. There are multiple allusions throughout the story that Bierce used to convey the death of Peyton. Imagery is used throughout the entire story to show that Peyton is hallucinating. Throughout the entire story Bierce uses multiple literary techniques to foreshadow Peyton’s death.

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In the short story, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, by Ambrose Bierce, the author tells the story of a man named Peyton Farquhar who was hanged for his crimes and being a Confederate saboteur. Within seconds of being hung, Farquhar imagines himself surviving being hung and escaping to his family. Ultimately, he actually dies since it was only a manipulation of reality. Besides the fact of his death, Time is an idea that it clearly present in the story and demonstrates an important role. Time plays an important role in the story by displaying how extraordinary the mind can do in a short period of time, that 8 manipulation of time does not remove one from reality and Farquhar’s lack of control of events.

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