An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge Essay

In Ambrose Bierces hapless explanation, An occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, he uses his setting to carry out the plot of the story meliorate than the short film of An incident at Owl Creek Bridge. The words in the short story flow so beautifully, and give such detail as to fully understand the emotions running done Peyton Farquhars head as the date progresses to his hanging. In my opinion, the storys graphic settings and imagery slowly grasp the introduction rising action/climax, and conclusion as Ambrose Bierce originally wanted the story to be told.In the introduction of the short story, Bierce tells of a man, soon to be known as Farquhar, standing higher up a bridge engaged to be hung. As he is waiting for the lieutenant to complete preparations, he lays eyes upon a ready of drift wood in the swirling stream below the bridge. The story and so goes into detail about how slowly the stream appeared to be moving the drift wood along, He so let his gaze wander to the swirlin g water of the stream racing madly beneath his feet. A piece of dancing driftwood caught his attention and his eyes followed the current.How slowly it appeared to move What a sluggish stream (Literature 71). However, in the short film it only represents the image of the piece of wood. This driftwood symbolizes the situation he is currently in that he is in a chaotic predicament but is still able to slowly drift through the problem. indeed the story helps the reader fully grasp the introduction of the story better than the short film. During the middle of the story, onward Farquhars last moments he thinks about his wife and children only to be interrupted by the intemperate of his pocket watch.As if time were slowing down in his last seconds, the interval between for each one tick is symbolic to how little time he has left. Striking through the thought of his dear ones was the hefty which he could neither ignore nor understand, a sharp, distinct, metallic percussion like the st roke of a blacksmiths hammer upon the anvil.. the delays became maddening (Literature 72). In the short film of An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, time speeds up and his pocket watch was taken from him by one of the officers, clearly not as in dept to relate why Bierce wrote the pocket watch into the story.Also during the rising action of the indite story, it is told in vast details of how he plunges into the water, and begins to swim through the stream. When he removes the noose from his neck, he sees himself performing but doesnt follow through. He commands himself to place the cord back once he feels a sudden knife thrust throughout his body, but his hands disobey him. This gives the reader inside details of the characters internal state, which is not explicit in the short film.Lastly, before it is known that Farquhar has been hung and this was his mind flashing through his last moments of life, the soldiers begin dismission guns while he swims to safety downstream. At one point the written story tells of how he is reel and whirled a travel in the water which brings us back to the symbolism of the driftwood in the introduction. He spins round and round like the driftwood, finally caught up and not in control of the predicament he is in. He had been caught in a vortex and was being whirled on with a velocity of board.. spinning like a kick the bucket (Literature 75).The film does not show the final symbolism of the driftwood and rushes through the stream to only have Farquhar advance to the bank and run through the forest to his wife and children. Therefore, in my opinion, Bierces written version of An Occurrence at Owl Creek, uses the setting to advance the story and plot to the readers. It is more in dept and brings all things to at large(p) internal state, physical state, symbolism, and his flashbacks. The introduction, rising action, and conclusion were all better carried out with setting in the written version rather the short film.