In “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” Ambrose Bierce tells the story of Peyton Farquhar facing his death in a naturalistic theme by his fate being controlled by destiny, the protagonist being wiped out at the end, and man inheriting compulsive traits that motivate him. The first section begins with Farquhar’s wrists bound, a noose surrounded on the neck, tied to train tracks above the water. He is surrounded by northern army men, signaling the reader this is civil war period. Bierce states “The man's hands were behind his back, the wrists bound with a cord. A rope closely encircled his neck, and the slack fell to the level of his knees” (Bierce 2). The current scene sets the reader up for the rest of the story. Section two goes back in time
