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Examples Of Farquhar In An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge

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Peyton Farquar: Tragic Hero
In the story, “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” written by Ambrose Bierce, Peyton Farquar, a rich plantation owner at the time of the Civil War, is unfairly hanged for his crime of intending to burn down the Owl Creek Bridge. The story is about Farquar’s heroic escape and return to his family, only for you to find out it was just a dream and that he was actually dead. Farquar is considered a tragic hero because of his error in judgment which led to his destruction; we see this from his noble status, tragic flaw, and his many other characteristics of being a tragic hero.
First we see his noble status; he is about thirty-five years old, “a well to do planter, of an old and highly respected Alabama family”, and a slave owner who was devoted to the Southern cause. Since his was so highly respected and wealthy he was unable to serve in the Civil War, however; he longed to be a hero so he did whatever he could to aid the South. …show more content…

A soldier rode up to Farquhar’s gate and asked for a drink of water, as his wife got the water, Farquhar questioned the soldier for information about the War. The soldier, who was a Federal scout in disguise, told Farquhar about how the “Yanks” were repairing the railroads and how they had reached the Owl Creek Bridge. Farquhar questioned the man about how he could help out to ruin the Federalists advances. The man told Farquhar about some dried driftwood and suggested that setting it on fire would easily set the whole bridge ablaze. Farquhar had no inclination that the man he had conversed with was a Federal scout who was tricking him, and so that night when we assume that Farquhar is attempting to go and burn the Owl Creek Bridge down the Federal scout catches

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