“An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge ” Questions

1. In Part 1, Bierce includes few details about the condemned man and does not reveal the reason why he is being hanged. How does this help create suspense?

This helps create suspense by allowing us to think about what will happen to Farquhar later in the story.

2. In what ways are the condemned man’s perceptions of time and motion distorted as he is waiting to be hanged? Why are his distorted perceptions important?

The ways that the man’s perceptions of time and motion are distorted as he is waiting to by hanged by Farquhar’s mind is in slow motion because he is thinking that he has escaped and came back to his family but really his body is still at the bridge ready to be hanged. Distorted perceptions are important because it gives you the ability to have more time to think about what will happen and what you want to happen. It also foreshadows Farquhar’s death.

3. What seems to be the narrator’s attitude toward Farquhar in Part II? What is the narrator’s attitude toward war?

The narrator’s attitude toward Farquahar in Part II is that he thinks he has the ability to be a soldier and patriotic but he isn’t bright and gets himself killed.

4. Considering the outcome of the story, what is ironic or surprising about Farquhar’s longing for the “larger life of a soldier?” What is ironic about the fact that Farquhar agrees with the saying that “all is fair in love and war?”

It is ironic because Farquhar thinks he is a soldier and he gets the life like a soldier. Its ironic that Farquahar agrees to the saying because he loves to be a soldier and he thinks its fair but it really isn’t because people can be hanged for whatever reason.

5. What details in Part III suggests that Farquhar’s journey occurs in his mind? How is the journey connected with the plan of escape that occurs to him moments before he is hanged?

The details about Farquhar thinking about his family and the bullets missing him suggest the journey in his mind. Farquhar has senses that are unnatural. The journey is Farquhar’s plan of escape just before he is hanged.

6. Explain whether you think the portrayal of Farquhar’s final thoughts and sensations is realistic.

I think Farquhar’s final thoughts and sensations were realistic because if I was about to be hanged and killed, I would have thought about something similar and it would probably seem like it took a long time thinking about it.

7. Point of view refers to the vantage point from which the story is told.  Why is the limited third-person point of view appropriate for this story? How might the story be different if Bierce had used an omniscient third-person narrator?

It’s appropriate to have limited third-person point of view for this story because I gives the reader less thought about the character to find out that Farquhar is only thinking about is journey. The story might be different by we would know that Farquhar was only thinking that he escaped from his death and the ending would not have been surprising.

8. How does Bierce’s use of flashback contribute to the effectiveness of the story?

Bierce use of flashback made the story more of a mystery and suspense by knowing that Farquhar is about to be hanged and later finding out why.