Character Analysis: An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge

Is our military the lean, mean, killing machine we have all come to know and expect? If it is now, has it always been? And is that for the good of all involved? After reading “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”, it does not seem that the author believes the answer to these questions are yes. In fact, Bierce conveys a harsh and vituperative attitude towards the military and war throughout the entire story. Bierce took special effort to highlight the unfavorable qualities of the military. Throughout the entire story, there were instances filled with military mishaps. The sharpshooters that missed a motionless target from a mere few hundred yards. The cannon that seemed to have nearly struck Fahrquhar in the head and did no damage to the man …show more content…
One could argue that Bierce somewhat painted Fahrquhar as not the brightest around, either. Fahrquhar believed with full trust from a man in a Southern uniform but likely a Northern accent that the Union forces are placing heaving stake on the Owl Creek Bridge and are not putting forth measures to protect it. Personally, if the Owl Creek Bridge is so vitally important to the cause, I feel that it is safe to assume that it will be protected. This could be considered another criticism of the military in that they would kill a dumb guy, or more preferably, hopelessly …show more content…
In a flashback experienced by Fahrquhar while standing on the plank just being being hanged, he encounters what he believes to be an honest passer by soldier of The Confederacy. Fahrquhar and his wife gave him a drink of water and the soldier proceeded to inform him about occurrences at the Owl Creek Bridge. The man turned out to be a Federal Scout dressed in a Southern uniform. The scout convinced him to go and tamper with the bridge even though an order that anyone who did “will be summarily hanged.” There was not a large force guarding the bridge. In this encounter, Bierce takes his criticism to whole new level. It is one thing to call someone incompetent but it is a whole new realm of nasty to call someone a liar. It is clear that throughout “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”, Ambrose Bierce subtly but forcefully describes his disdain for the military and war. He forces them to blunder every time they need to perform well. Bierce induces plenty of sympathy for the “victim” of the story. However, when looked at critically, he was not quite so innocent. Although it is hard to truly understand what Bierce was thinking without a clear written statement by him of his thoughts, it is safe to assume he was no fan of