What is the main idea of An Occurrence at Owl Creek?
“An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” is an elaborately devised commentary on the fluid nature of time. The story's structure, which moves from the present to the past to what is revealed to be the imagined present, reflects this fluidity as well as the tension that exists among competing notions of time.
The theme of this particular story quickly came to mind after initially concluding the reading, the author is trying to convey that nobody can escape death and how thoughts in the mind are so substantial in the consciousness that it can take over the reality.
“An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” is the story of the hanging of a Confederate civilian, Peyton Farquhar, as punishment for his efforts to sabotage a Union bridge.
It is revealed that Farquhar never escaped at all; he imagined the entire third part of the story during the time between falling through the bridge and the noose breaking his neck.
Since the story is set during the Civil War, the most notable conflict is between North and South, Union and Confederacy. As an Alabama plantation owner, Peyton is sympathetic with the South's cause. Although he does not fight in the war, he wants to help his side.
The ticking watch sets the reader up for this shift in the protagonist's senses, as both suggest a certain change in perception in the moments before death. The ticking watch, in turn, makes it easier for Bierce to segue into the surreal near-dream of Farquhar's escape and flight.
Answer and Explanation: At the end of 'An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge,' Bierce reveals that Peyton Farquhar has imagined his entire escape and that he in fact is ''dead; his body, with a broken neck, swung gently from side to side beneath the timbers of the Owl Creek bridge.
At the end of this scene, Bierce reveals that the soldier is in fact a "Federal scout," creating an example of dramatic irony because the reader has this information while Farquhar does not, so he falls into the trap laid by the Union.
Bierce uses subtle instances of foreshadowing in “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” to gesture to the gap between reality and illusion that widens throughout the story. Bierce's story hinges heavily on the unexpected final revelation—that Farquhar, far from escaping, has actually been hanged.
The Federal scout lied to Farquhar about being a Confederate soldier because he wanted to gauge Farquhar's loyalties. At this point in the war, many Southern farmers were ready to see the fighting end.
What actually happens to Farquhar?
Farquhar is dead, his broken body actually swinging from the side of the Owl Creek bridge.
(and) a rope closely encircled his neck" (Bierce 1). The military had believed that he was going to burn the bridge down, and even though Farquhar was an innocent man, the military hanged him. Farquhar was never able to burn the bridge, therefore he punished as an innocent man.
Farquhar deserves to be executed since he disobeyed a rule and attempted to burn down a bridge. Farquhar's sentence is too harsh. He doesn't deserve to die as punishment for trying to burn down a bridge, especially because he is a civilian and not a soldier.
He was killed in the siege of a Mexican town in January, 1914. He took his own life, fulfilling his endorsement of suicide as a noble act. The riddle of his fate has stumped all comers: Secret Service agents, Pinkerton detectives, newspaper reporters, scholars and amateur sleuths.
In Part II of 'An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge', Farquhar decides to destroy the Owl Creek Bridge because he wants to fight back against the Union forces invading his territory. Farquhar is an ardent supporter of the Confederate Army.
The Owl Creek bridge suggests connection and transition. Confederate forces or sympathizers had presumably destroyed the bridge in an attempt to prevent the North from advancing deeper into enemy territory.
Conflict in a story is a struggle between opposing forces. Characters must act to confront those forces and there is where conflict is born. If there is nothing to overcome, there is no story. Conflict in a story creates and drives the plot forward.
It creates the tension, it launches the plot, and it evokes the themes. Quite simply, without the conflicts, there is no story. To understand what's interesting about a story, then, you only have to keep an eye out for what the characters want, and then what gets in the way of it.
Peyton Farquhar's perception of his watch slowing down shows the audience that his perception of reality does not match reality itself. He is not perceiving things the way they are. The adrenaline coursing through his body in anticipation of death has heightened his senses and slowed his sense of time.
The first example of an allusion, is when Farquhar becomes unconscious while he is traveling home. “ Doubtless, despite his suffering, he had fallen asleep while walking,” (489). This alludes to the fact that he is dying. This is because no one falls asleep while moving.
Why does Farquhar hear his watch ticking as he dies?
In "Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge", why does Farquhar hear his watch ticking as he dies? He hopes his watch will still start to work.
The theme of this particular story quickly came to mind after initially concluding the reading, the author is trying to convey that nobody can escape death and how thoughts in the mind are so substantial in the consciousness that it can take over the reality.
What is the primary theme of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge"? The line between dreams and reality is thin.
Thesis Statement
In "An occcurence at Owl Creek Bridge" the theme of appearance vs. reality is developed through Farquhar's illusions and mirages, the colour gray and Farquhar's love for his family.
However, ''Owl Creek Bridge'' isn't a first-person narration, meaning that it's not told from the perspective of the main character, meaning Farquhar. Instead, the text comes from a third-person narrator, or told by an external force or character.