An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge

An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce is a realistic fantasy story that accurately depicts the Realism period. In Abby Werlock's criticism, she says, "Although set during the Civil War, it is notable not for the combat scenes that other Bierce stories portray but for the ingenious blending of realism and fantasy that inevitably leads to the Surprise Ending." (Werlock). Realism is sometimes seen as similar to Romanticism, but I found that to be somewhat untrue. Many writers of the Realism period wrote quite opposite of the writers from the Romanticist period. Romanticism literature is more focused on the setting and personification, when Realism is more focused on the characters and conflict. Ambrose Bierce does a great job of writing Realism literature that is distinctly Realism, not Romanticism.

In An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, one of the most notable characteristics of Realism is the detail put into Peyton Farquhar, the main character. Bierce describes every action and characteristic of Peyton in a very detailed way. He spends much more time focusing on describing Peyton and his emotions than he does actually telling the story and describing the conflict, which is once of the characteristics of Realism.

Another characteristic of Realism in this story is how Peyton is just a normal, middle class man. Bierce describes him as a normal man of that time period. Peyton was a planter who had a wife and children. He was very average and normal, which makes the story realistic. He did not fight in the war, but refers to himself as a "civilian soldier" (Bierce). This literary work was also written during the aftermath of the Civil War, therefore Farquhar entitles himself as a Confederate, though he does not actually fight in the war (Bierce). In Romanticism, the uncommon, genius type person was very valued. In Realism, the writers focus their characters around the middle class and Bierce displays this well in An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge.

Another important characteristic of Realism in An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge is the focus on the details of the characters. This is one of the most important characteristics of Realism because of course, it makes the story seem more realistic! One example of the extreme detail that Bierce uses in his story is, A sentinel at each end of the bridge stood with his rifle in the position known as "support," that is to say, vertical in front of the left shoulder, the hammer resting on the forearm thrown straight across the chest -- a formal and unnatural position, enforcing an erect carriage of the body." (Bierce). This quote is a great example of the detail that Bierce put into his characters. Bierce describes exactly how the men were holding their weapons, which is unnecessary, but this is what Realism is all about! Using all these extreme details makes the story seem more real.

An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge is a great Realism story by Ambrose Bierce. He really makes the story feel real, even though for the majority of the story, the man is actually just imagining everything as he is being hung. Werlock says at the very end of her criticism, "In fact, the escape occurs in Farquhar's imagination as he resists death, which, finally, is the inevitable reality common to us all." (Werlock). Werlock is very right. Death is something that everyone can relate to, and it is something that everybody knows is very much real.

Works Cited

Bierce, Ambrose. "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge." Page by Page Books. 2004. Web. 17 Jan. 2011.

Werlock, Abby H. P. "'Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge'." The Facts On File Companion to the American Short Story, Second Edition. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2009. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= CASS629&SingleRecord=True (accessed January 17, 2011).