Journal 8 Ambrose Bierce - Can't Escape Death

Quote: "Peyton Farquhar was dead; his body, with a broken neck, swung gently from side to side beneath the timbers of the Owl Creek bridge" (366).

Summary: After a vivid dream sequence where we think that Peyton has survived his hanging, the story ends with this depressing quote that Peyton Farquhar has been hanged and that it was only a dream.

Response: As I have stated in my previous blogs, Ambrose Bierce was extremely pessimistic and had a very sarcastic sense of humor that was reflected in his writings.

In this passage, it seems that the joke, although it is not of the knee-slapper variety, comes full circle. Rather, it is the completion of a grave joke that leaves the reader feeling depressed and unsatisfied. We have already been introduced to us as someone who could be like anyone of us, merely a citizen trying to serve his country as best he can. However, he has been betrayed by a Federal Scout, who came into his own house and lied to his face.

We then go through a whole sequence where Peyton seems to have made an escape from his seemingly inescapable fate. It was not just any escape, but rather it was a heroic escape, an escape that we see in movies. Typically in movies, we want to see the hero win, or see him come full circle. It is within our culture for us to root for the under dog to win. Furthermore, with the detail and description that Bierce writes with, we feel the suspense and thrill that Peyton is experiencing as he tries to make his escape. In a way, we identify with this character and we assume his role. So, his escape becomes our escape.

It all seems to be according to plan, as the long journey home is near its completion as Peyton stumbles into his yard and is about to embrace his wife, but Bierce slaps us in the face, with this ending line. It is as if he is telling us we cannot escape death, and the thought of that escape is incredulous and naïve, as he states matter of factly that “Peyton Farquhar was dead.” We were tricked into believing that an escape was possible, and Bierce delivers us a punchline that brings us back to his harsh reality.