Authors Note: Response to short story, "An Occurance At Owl Creek Bridge"
Greatness Fallen Short
Time seems to stand still as the clock runs out, the last play moving at a snail’s pace in the eyes of those participating. As the team’s success rides on a single man’s shoulders the quarterback pulls the ball from the running back’s grasp in order to become the hero. If he fails he will lose all respect, and suffer rejection from his team. Through imagery and the manipulation of time, the author of “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” transforms a scene of death, into one man’s ego driven desire to put himself in history in order to elucidate that ego cannot spare someone from inevitable death.
The world today teaches the power of the will to win, but the will to win is worthless if one solely desires to triumph for themselves. It takes a greater desire, one of the will to train and prepare; to feel inside that success will be for the betterment of the team and not oneself. However unlike a game, the short story posts a life or death situation when a man is sent to be hanged for his supposedly heroic act to try and stop the incoming army. Inside of all motivating thoughts, family is the greatest and “As these thoughts, which have here to be set down in words, were flashed into the doomed man’s brain rather than evolved from it, the captain nodded to the sergeant”(193). This man did not doom himself for his family; he did it out of an egotistical desire to go down in history. Just the thought of a death sentence is enough to make one cringe, becoming even more grotesque with the simple thought of a hanging. It is an image portrayed incredibly throughout the story, demonstrating that “Death is a dignitary who, when he comes announced, is to be received with formal manifestations of respect, even by those most familiar with him” (193). The man knew the penalty, yet he was not willing to accept the consequence. Yet what drives the message is the author’s manipulation of time. As the story jumps from present to past, and from past to a day dream it becomes vivid and clear that the man wanted more to experience a heroic getaway than to be among his family in safety. This force of ego, although powerful cannot save even the most schematic of men from certain death.
Ben Ten Bionic Ben! This is really good Ben. Good Job!
ReplyDeleteVery well written response to the story. I liked how you linked personal life like football into your story. Once again if you could include more literary devices it would be better. Very good.
ReplyDeleteI like this piece. I enjoyed the way that your syntax and vocabulary match the level of analysis. I would say that you should transition smoother from the fictional narrative intro to the thesis. Also, I wish there were a more formalized conclusion. It may be because I am an English teacher and all, but I like the clarity of reiterating the thesis at the end, and helping the reader to draw a conclusion. Speak more clearly to your writing goals in the author's note next time. That gives the reader direction, an idea to look for what you are trying to do and give feedback to that specific aspect of the writing.
ReplyDelete