Before he knew it the sergeant stepped aside and Farquhar fell though the bridge to his death, but this is not the e... ... middle of paper ... ...ay to end such a captivating story, but for those who were able to catch on it may actually seem quite peaceful. When reading Bierce’s story much of it does not make sense to a first time reader, how could Farquhar do all of this but in the end had died of a broken neck. When reading and analyzing the story further the experiences Farquhar has, the reader starts to sense that he was dead. Bierce made Farquhar an optimistic man and in his world between reality and imagination this is how he survived. Farquhar used his imagination to escape death, even though in the story he did die he used his imagination to escape his own pain and suffering by pushing his own mind into believing that his imagination was reality he would survive and did survive.
The scout also relays that the Yankee commander has issued an order to hang any civilian caught interfering with the railroad. Farquhar asks how a civilian would go about helping the Confederates succeed, and the scout tells him how easy it would be to burn the bridge. In section III, Farquhar’s mind returns to the present when he loses consciousness as he falls off the bridge. A sharp pain in his neck and the sense of suffocation awakens him. The soldiers fire at him as he swims, but Farquhar escapes into the woods and makes it back home to his wife.
(par.17) I find it very odd that the couple would be so eager to speak with this soldier u... ... middle of paper ... ...ything in between your two marks. This is how you will know that Peyton did not actually "die" until the last sentence of the story. This is how it reads: "The sergeant stepped aside, he (Peyton) feels a stunning blow upon the back of his neck: a blinding white light blazes all about him, with a sound like the shock of a cannon-then all is darkness and silence! Peyton Farquhar was dead; his body, with a broken nick, swung gently from side to side beneath the timbers of the Owl Creek Bridge." Everything that happened between these two statements happened in a split second.
Holden remembers James Castle, his classmate and also a prematurely deceased boy, who committed suicide by jumping from the window because he would not take back his word in an argument. To Holden he represents the fallen innocence that died for the truth. Holden is also identified with him several times, for example, when he mentions that James died in the turtleneck sweater he borrowed from him and most prominently when he even contemplates to jump as well. Death, in the end, would be in a way sufficient means for preserving his own innocence. It would remove him far from any other changes, leaving him conserved as Allie.
All of this proves that after someone passes away those close to them forgive them for their actions and sins and simply move on with their lives. Death makes people realize that maybe they should’ve forgiven someone in the first place because once they’re gone they can’t express their feelings towards them anymore. And no one finds peace in caring too much about something they no longer have any control over.
The irony of Farqhar actually imagining his escape , the struggles that he faces while making this escape , making it safely to his own home and the arms o... ... middle of paper ... ...e fear left only to return once he realized that his mother and the life he knew was now gone . All he could do now was cry , the only way he knew how to .The boy had been spared death because he was deaf and did not hear the battle going on but his life was in fact destroyed at the same moment because of the battle. Works Cited "An Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge." Classic Reader. 2009.
Since Billy Pilgrim is ultimately creating these irrational realities in life; the Tralfamadorians must alternately become a part of Billy Pilgrims subconscious thought process. The phrase “So it goes” becomes an acceptance of life and destiny – embracing the inevitable unpredictability life offers. It is a coping mechanism to express the endless amount of deaths Billy Pilgrim has been forced to witness. By repeating “So it goes” after each death, Billy Pilgrim is ultimately eliminating the impact of death by removing its attached culture. He does not feel sad anymore because life goes on; when his father dies, when his friends die, when one hundred thirty thousand innocent people die in Dresden, when his wife dies, and when Billy Pilgrim, himself, dies – It’s just “So it goes.” Billy can now face his own death without feeling any remorse or fear, even knowing the exact way he will die.
On Northup's journey to Louisiana, he met Arthur and Robert who were also going to be sold as slaves. The three devised a plot whereas they would overtake the boat, kill if necessary, the captain and crew and guide the vessel back to New York. They “resolved to regain our liberty or lose our lives.” (46) This plot never came to fruition, as Robert became ill and died of smallpox. The three men had previously determined that the other slaves were not to be trusted, and they had to carry this out themselves. With Robert now deceased, there was no other choice but to forgo their attempt.
He was constantly ridiculed and made fun of. His only escape from all that was death, as sad as that is. His life had to end just so he could be happy. Death brings a place of acceptance, something Peter has never experienced before. The speaker, a spectator at Peter’s funeral, hears snide comments still being thrown toward the deceased.
He would pretend to ride into town, then walk back and sneak up on the slaves as to scare and deceive them. One day, after a severe beating by Covey, (Douglass 86) Douglass ran for refuge for one night from a slave named Sandy Jenkins. Jenkins believed that a certain root had magical powers and told Douglass that if he wore it on his right side no white man could beat him (Douglass 90). He returned the next day wearing the root, and to his surprise, Covey did not beat him for a time. A few days later, Covey tried to tie him up for a beating.