Union Soldiers Fighting in the FieldBy Albert Bierstadt

“An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”Ambrose Bierce

Ambrose Gwinnett BierceBorn on June 24, 1842 in Horse Cave Creek, Ohio.Began writing seriously during his service in the American Civil War.After working for the US mint, Bierce had a string of jobs writing for newspapers on the west coast, and moved on to writing for magazines in later years.

The Devil’s DictionaryOriginally published as an occasional newspaper column. The definitions were complied and published as a book.

Definitions…Gas meter(n.) The family liar in the basement.Lawyer (n.) One skilled in circumvention of the law.[3]Marriage (n.) A household consisting of a master, a mistress, and two slaves, making in all, two.Religion (n.) A daughter of Hope and Fear, explaining to Ignorance the nature of the Unknowable.

Other Literary Works… “Chickamauga” “Killed at Resaca” “The Boarded Window” “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” Several volumes of poetry

The End? “In the fall of 1913, while en route to El

Paso, Bierce paid final respects to a number of his old Civil War battlefields. He passed over the Mexican border in late autumn, and wrote one last letter from Chihuahua on December 26. He ended by remarking, "As to me, I leave here tomorrow for an unknown destination." Thereafter, Bierce disappeared. Despite the many rumors and hypotheses concerning his death, nothing substantial is known of his final days.”(http://www.ambrosebierce.org/timeline8.html)

Romanticism or Realism? “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” is

a piece of literature that bridges the divide between Romanticism and Realism.

Look for elements of both in the video.

Elements of Romanticism

Elements of Realism

Closing Yesterday we talked about

Regionalism and “local color”. Find TWO instances of local color

that help to set the time period of the Civil War. Explain when this occurs in the film and what is happening in the scene.