Name: “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” by Ambrose Bierce Date: Period: Section I: pages 482-483 Literary Element Quote/ Example Explain Elements of Realism: IMAGERY Color Symbolism: GRAY Gray represents cloudiness, lack of clarity Personification Theme: FLUID NATURE OF TIME (shift in time/ perspective of time) Foreshadowing Section II: pages 483-484 Literary Element Proverb (a short saying stating a general truth or piece of advice) Quote/ Example “... all is fair in love and war,” (Bierce 483). Explain Name: “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” by Ambrose Bierce Date: Color Symbolism: GRAY Foreshadowing Section III: pages 484-489 Literary Element Elements of Realism: IMAGERY Foreshadowing Theme: BLURRED REALITY Color symbolism: GRAY Theme: ILLUSION VS. REALITY (shift back to reality) Quote/ Example Explain Period: Name: “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” by Ambrose Bierce Date: Period: KEY Section I: pages 482-483 Literary Element Quote/ Example Explain Elements of Realism: IMAGERY Color Symbolism: GRAY “... his eyes were large and Gray represents dark gray,” (482) cloudiness, lack of clarity; eyes are the windows to the soul; the civilian’s gray eyes reveal he has a lack of clarity Personification “Death is a dignitary who when he comes announced is to be received with formal manifestations of respect…” (482) Theme: FLUID NATURE OF TIME (shift in time/ perspective of time) “... the stream racing madly…” to “How slowly it appeared to move!” (482) Foreshadowing “... the death knell,” (483) Death is personified as a military official; death would be very common in times of war, and soldiers treat death very seriously The civilian is about to die, and near-death experiences cause your ‘life to flash before your eyes’ - here, the civilian “... as slow as the tolling of sees time slow down in the death knell” to “What front of him; senses are he heard was the ticking heightened, causing the of his watch,” (483) ticking to become deafening “The doomed man’s brain,” (483) The image of death foreshadows the civilian’s death; calling him a ‘doomed man’ implies he is about to die Name: “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” by Ambrose Bierce Date: Period: Section II: pages 483-484 Literary Element Quote/ Example Explain Proverb (a short saying stating a general truth or piece of advice) “All is fair in love and war,” (483) This proverb means anything can happen in love or in war without consequences, making everything “fair.” Bierce says this dictum is “villainous” because it results in people losing a sense of responsibility for their actions in these circumstances. Color Symbolism: GRAY “... a gray-clad soldier,” (483) During the Civil War, Confederate soldiers wore gray uniforms. Gray represents a lack of clarity, and we discover at the end of section II that the soldier was actually a Union soldier; he used the gray uniform literally and metaphorically to cloak his true identity. Foreshadowing The federal scout tricks Farquhar (484) Farquhar and his wife believe the soldier to be giving them information as a Confederate, but we learn at the end of section II that he is a UNion soldier. This use of dramatic irony foreshadows Bierce’s capture and ultimate death. Name: “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” by Ambrose Bierce Date: Period: Section III: pages 484-489 Literary Element Quote/ Example Explain Elements of Realism: IMAGERY Foreshadowing “was as one already dead,” The quote “was as one already dead” (484) foreshadows Farquhar’s death, and gives a clue to strange, mysterious, the reader that he is unfamiliar surroundings imagining his escape. The (488) unfamiliar surroundings he finds himself in on p. 488 reveal to the reader that Farquhar is in a dream-like state and these events are only a fantasy; foreshadowing that in reality, he is going to die. Theme: BLURRED REALITY “ages later, it seemed,” (484) “eyes were blinded,” (485) “commingled and blurred,” (488) Color symbolism: GRAY “gray spider,” (485) “gray eye,” (486) Bierce’s use of the fluid nature of time reveals that Farquhar is in an illusion; “it seemed” like ages later, but we discover that in reality this is all a dream. The repetition of blindness represents that he is blind to reality; his dream is blurred because it isn’t real. Bierce continues to use the color gray throughout section III to show the blur between reality and illusion. The “gray eye” of the soldier parallels his gray eyes from section I; perhaps a reflection of himself, or a representation of a lack of clarity as Farquhar is Name: “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” by Ambrose Bierce Date: Period: dreaming. Theme: ILLUSION VS. REALITY (shift back to reality) “he feels a stunning blow on the back of his neck,” (489) There is a sudden, jarring shift back to reality at the very end of the story. The dream-like state Farquhar was is filled with light and bright imagery; his wife is in a white dress, her smile is one of “ineffable joy,” and there is no more mention of pain or struggle. However, Bierce quickly shifts Farquhar back to reality as he feels the noose and finally dies.
