For those of you that are interested, that would like to read it…
My prompt was:
“‘An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge’ ( http://extend.unb.ca/wss/1145demo/owl2.htm ) has been a popular short story for more than a century. It has been translated into other languages and made into several films.
“In a well-organized essay, analyze the features that have made this short story translate so well into other time periods and cultures. You may wish to discuss the choice of language, the manipulation of time, the nature of dreams, or any other relevant features.”
So here’s the essay: (Keep in mind as you read it, it had to be a very formal paper. Oh, and I… kinda forgot the main character’s name… that’s why his name, Peyton Fahrquhar, is never mentioned in my paper.)
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“An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” is a strong tale about courage and about standing up for what one believes. Each person in every culture has an individual belief system that dictates his or her actions. The constant reminders of home and family left behind are common in wartime stories, and these reminders are what make such tales strike close to the heart and remain there, causing the reader to feel an outpouring of sympathy for the character in danger of losing his life. The tale of the protagonist in “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” invokes a deep sense of injustice in the reader, who cannot help but feel outraged at the trickery of the opposing army which so cruelly lures the Southern gentleman into a trap.
Time is an essential element in the telling of the story. The great fluctuations in time show the reader that the protagonist is a man of family, that he is willing to do whatever must be done fot eh sake of that which he loves. This concept is easily identified with by any person who has even once found something to love or care for. The vivid descriptions paint a terrifying image in the mind of the reader as the protagonist dreams of escaping and returning home to his family. The terror of the escape as he swims through the swirling water, bullets whizzing past him and so narrowly missing him, strike a fear in the reader, causing the reader to hope, even if only for a moment, that the man will succeed in his escape and make it back home to his family.
The author of the selection made this tale even closer to the heart of its reader by focusing on a common citizen, a young gentleman of the southern aristocracy, instead of focusing on a soldier, as many wartime authors are wont to do. The fact that many people have lived through a war, not as a soldier but merely as a citizen of a warring country, helps people to sympathize with the young man and his plight, and makes the tale not only popular, but memorable as well.
