Comments by
Michael Willis
I think the film is far more effective than the text in capturing the final moments of the story. Peyton’s death is far more “in your face” through the visual medium, though I’d suspect that’s almost always bound to be the case with death in literature.
Dan, I think your theory about the “gates of heaven” is really interesting. There were a lot of potential cliches: the gate (as you mentioned), the camera cutting through the vegetation, the smiling woman in white emerging from the house…
Along with the clip included above in paragraph three, this part of the film is one of the most noteworthy in the entire film. It wasn’t exactly how I imagined the “monotonous singsong” that Bierce describes in paragraph six, but I think the film’s version far better captures the text. Although most of the remainder of the film does this as well, this is one example of how the clip is done in “real time” to more accurately depict – perhaps even through Farquhar’s eyes – what is going on.
Although the music is just a little bit creepy, this clip is my favorite of the movie. The visual and aural aspects come together seemlessly, and it’s probably the finest part of the film. It does sort of, as Daniel suggested, invite the viewer to appreciate aspects of his or her own life.
I think that the lengthy underwater shots are used to create a sense of suspense. There are a few seconds where the screen is nearly all-black, briefly heightening the reader’s sense of confusion and creating a sort of mysterious aura.
I found it interesting, before the noose is placed around his neck, how nervous Peyton appears, but after he glances around and takes in his surroundings, he doesn’t appear particularly tremulous. Perhaps this is foreshadowing to Peyton’s “escape”? Or has his daydream already begun?
I think the “bird’s eye view” angle and long shots successfully translate the detached feeling of the written text to the medium of film. Everything feels very far away and procedural.
This paragraph is so short, so simple, so to-the-point. A very intense ending, even for a story that started out mild and became more intense. As Zhenya mentioned, Conlogue nails this right on the head – I was about to use his exact phrase: a “verbal slap” to the face.
The lines Colleen mentioned (“He had not known … uncanny in the revalation.”) are, to me, some of the most tragic in this entire story. There have been spots in the story where hope for Farquhar seems to fade before, by some odd stroke of luck, springing right back, but this is one of the more tragic reminders that it will not end well for Farquhar.
Had we not already been aware of the true tragedy of the story’s ending, this is where that glimmer of hope would begin to fade. Farquhar’s pervasive doubt foreshadows bad things for him.
I agree with Dan. Such detail seems almost ludicrous (but intentional) and undermines the actuality of the supposed keenness of his senses, but it sure makes the story more interesting.
I think punctuation is equally as important in this paragraph being “fast” and “exciting.” Notice how many sentences in this paragraph are exclamations.
Even though Farquhar is not dead yet and had been “awakened,” the language here is some of the most intense yet. Very violent, but without being ridiculously dismal.
The irony seems a bit cinematic. Far beyond the rest of the story, I can see this “scene” most clearly in my head. Imagine the grief that Farquhar’s wife feels too, knowing she assisted the man who caused her husband’s hanging.
Here’s where the dramatic irony that Colleen mentioned in the last paragraph’s comments really kicks in. Because we know what happens in the end, this quotation is where all the motors begin to turn and the unfortunate connection between this story and Farquhar’s hanging is made.
I agree with Colleen – considering the structure of the story, it may just be dramatic irony, but Farquhar is demonstrating surprising foolishness by making himself so vincible.
If the story is designed in a “backwards” manner, as Soham and Kaitlyn proposed earlier, then this would be the rising action – here we have the first mention of the titular Owl Creek bridge. Owl Creek is located south of Tupelo, Mississippi.
The whole sentence (“Mrs. Farquhar was only too happy to serve him with her own white hands”) boldly sticks out in comparison with the rest of the paragraph (and story). Up to this point, the language has been normal and the imagery has been very natural or industrial. Words such as “happy” and “white” contrast greatly from the rest of the story thusfar.
The fall of Corinth refers to the former of two Civil War battles fought in the region in 1862. Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard abandoned the city after struggling against a strong Union army in May of that year.
This paragraph provides even more examples of how the author has been careful not to criminalize the protagonist through his language. He refers to him as “the civilian,” and the one time he refers to him as an alleged criminal, the focus is not his criminal misdoing but rather the fact he has been reprehended (“condemned man”).
Perhaps what Zhenya noticed was intentional by the author? I too noticed the phonetic similarity, and that along with the context seems to suggest some violent image.
The shift into the protagonist’s thoughts begins to make concrete a sort of battle between good versus bad in the story. While it’s a bit difficult to “take a side” in the beginning of the story – the language is mostly withdrawn and objective, and while there is a general sense of pity toward the protagonist, he is still identified as a criminal – once the protagonist identifies an “invader” and mentions his family, it becomes easier to take his side.
I found it interesting that this paragraph is where the author/narrator begins to try to garner sympathy (“a kindly expression … no vulgar assasin”) for the man being hanged, when he made the language in the first two paragraphs far more detached and formal.
“In the hemp” is a creative reference to the noose attached to the man’s neck.
The author seems to take meticulous steps to make the language have this “withdrawn” quality. For example, the story states that his hands “were behind his back,” when he could have easily used much more forceful language, and stated that “a rope closely encircled his neck,” when he could have described the rope as a noose, and once again used a much more forceful verb instead of “encircled.”