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Ambrose Bierce's

            The Occurrence at Owl Creek is a realistic portrayal of a dream state.
             This story by Ambrose Bierce has received more critical attention that any other piece of work by him. It is obvious that this story is way ahead of its" time. Peter Stoicheff from Newberry College said it was "something uncanny" " Each motion associated with Farquhar's hanging can be seen affecting the dream he and the reader are immersed in until the very last part of the story". Occurrence at Owl Creek dramatizes hope in the face of death, and sets a writing style that is still used today in suspense novels and films.
             Ambrose Bierce was born in Ohio in 1842. He started out as a brilliant journalist for the Cosmopolitan, and was cited as being bitter in most of his writings for that paper. The Cosmopolitan is where Ambrose basically started the "writing" chapter of his life. . During this time he became highly influenced by Edgar Allan Poe for his twisted page turning writings, and his depiction of life and death. Bierce later wrote tales of his Civil War experiences which gave him a lot of recognition, but the one that got the most attention was Occurrence at Owl Creek. He later settled in San Francisco where he married the daughter of a wealthy miner. He divorced her in 1904, and severed all family connections. Ambrose became friends with Mark Twain and many other writers of that time. Ambrose wasn't as well known as these writers; however, he was described as being destined for maximum potential. Later he became tired of America and fled to Mexico in 1913 where he disappeared, and was later believed to have been killed fighting Poncho Villa and his army. His body was never found. Ambrose Bierce was called "a difficult genius who never attained full stature." .
             The Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge takes place during the civil war and shows a writing style that is seldom used in this period of time.


Essays Related to Ambrose Bierce's

1. Ambrose bierce

Ambrose Bierce was born in Meigs County, Ohio, in 1842 and died in 1914. ... He was the tenth of thirteen children of Marcus and Laura Bierce. ... Ambrose Bierce is also famous for the circumstances surrounding the end of his life In 1913, after the breakup of his marriage and the death of his sons, he set out for Mexico to meet Pancho Villa and observe the Mexican Revolution at first hand and this was the end chapter of his own life because after that his fate still remains unknown. ... Ambrose Bierce's wrote a total of ninety-three short stories, of which 53 of them are of the term,...

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2. Ambrose Bierce

The Life of Ambrose Bierce Ambrose Bierce was born on June 24, 1842 in Meiggs County in Ohio. ... "Day killed a rival suitor of a sixteen-year-old-girl, and committed suicide" ("Ambrose Gwinett Bierce"). ... Adios, Ambrose" ("The Ambrose Bierce Site"). ... Many people were offended by his remarks which gave him the nickname "Bitter Bierce" ("Mark Twain - Ambrose Bierce and the Bohemian Grove Club"). "Bierce was "famous for his Civil War and supernatural stories, as well as his legendary wit, best appreciated by reading his Devil's Dictionary" ("The Ambrose Bierce Sit...

  • Word Count: 1049
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3. An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce

The short story, "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge," by Ambrose Bierce, carries a heavy theme: perception can be unreliable when our own desirable outcome contradicts that which reality provides. ... It becomes obvious Bierce's story reiterates this theme through the perspective of the first time reader and the protagonist. ... Bierce's tone suddenly changes when Farquhar is able to unbind his wrists. ... Ambrose Bierce inspires us to question our perspectives in an objective manner. ... " – Ambrose Bierce, circa 1911....

  • Word Count: 586
  • Approx Pages: 2
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4. Journal

In Ambrose Bierce's short story ,"The Mockingbird", he uses the tragic outcome of a scouting mission to show the importance of humanity. ... The ending took little words to produce as if Bierce didn't want it to overpower events that has led up to the ending, which is what is truly important in "The Mockingbird". After reading this story and "Chickamauga", through tragic endings and the negative attitudes in the story led me to believe that Ambrose Bierce had experienced, and disliked wars. ... In conclusion, Bierce related himself to each of these characters and used his experie...

  • Word Count: 308
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5. Works of Ambrose Bierce

In many of his works, Ambrose Bierce uses the affects of warfare and how it takes its toll on society. Ambrose Bierce wrote during the Civil War Period. ... Ambrose Bierce the author of "A Revolt of the Gods" shows how warfare effects society when he tells how a dog and cat fight tears a city apart. ... "Ambrose Bierce infused" his stories with an "attitude of scorn" for all his "sentimental illusions human beings cling to" (Probst, Robert 466). ... Bierce's fame came from his stories of war, horror and death. ...

  • Word Count: 870
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6. An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge

In author Ambrose Bierce's An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, the reader is given several hints to the stories dark and inevitable ending. ... Bierce then spends several pages trying to convince the reader, quite effectively, that Peyton's hanging may have indeed had a different outcome than expected. ... Not a very likely scenario considering that Bierce purports Peyton to have fallen into a creek. ... And what Bierce is stating is more of a dream than reality. ... Bierce then goes on to describe what Peyton first sees after reaching the surface of the river. ...

  • Word Count: 398
  • Approx Pages: 2

7. An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge

"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge"," by Ambrose Bierce, was published in 1890 and depicts the inner workings of a man's thoughts and values just prior to being executed by way of hanging. ... The realistic approach of Ambrose Bierce is captured mostly by his personal documentation of wartime thus the closely accurate descriptions. Ambrose Bierce was passionate about being a civil war journalist, and was known so his gruesome depictions of wart. ... (Bierce 1476). ... Ambrose Bierce makes a high tension story into something so real the ending seems almost unbearable. ...

  • Word Count: 1169
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8. Depths of Realism in Literature

A literary piece that is a great example of realism and a hint of romanticism is "The Occurrence on Owl Creek Bridge" by Ambrose Bierce. Before Bierce wrote this short story, he was first lieutenant during the American Civil War. ... Bierce's description of Farquhar was an ordinary middle class man. ... Bierce again, shows us realism in forms of literature by telling us that greed is a deadly sin. ... Ambrose Bierce's literary work is a good model of realism literature as it contains most of the characteristics of realism....

  • Word Count: 959
  • Approx Pages: 4
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9. Heroism

One specific hero, Carter Druse, was an independent man, who proved to be brave and loyal in the story, "A Horseman In the Sky," written by Ambrose Bierce. ... I am going to join it"" (Bierce 28). ... But this time his aim was at the horse" (Bierce 29). ... he said" (Bierce 32). ... In the story, "A Horseman In the Sky", by Ambrose Bierce, Carter can be recognized as one of those great heroes....

  • Word Count: 593
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  • Grade Level: High School

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