Job #3 - Authors

     Ambrose Bierce wrote in a satirical realist way. He wrote a lot of books about war because he had fought in the war. After Bierce saw war for what it was he wrote his stories in a way that made fun of war rather grotesquely. I was reading about Bierce and it said that he would not only make his stories grotesque but would then twist it ironically just to make war look dumb. After learning that I think that kind of answers my question I had as job 2. Also another thing I found interesting is that Bierce would always write about women in a way that they were tempting a man to madness that only death or war could fix. I think that shows in Occurrence of Owl Creek when the last thing that happens before Peyton dies is he sees his wife. I think we could have understood a lot more about this book if we had researched the author before reading the book.
 

     Washington Irving also wrote in a satirical way but it also had a mix of whimsicality and some fact and some fiction. Irving wrote about experiences he had had or he wrote about what he thought up on his own. Irving like Bierce had been involved in war but only briefly and his experiences did not change how he viewed things. Bierce and Irving seem to have one similarity which would be satirical writing but Irving does his with a light side to it while Bierce puts a darker side to it.

     Of the books that I have read of each of the authors, Occurrence at Owl Creek and Legend of Sleepy Hollow, I liked Occurrence at Owl Creek better because Occurrence at Owl Creek is more interesting and thought provoking then Legend of Sleepy Hollow.    

Job #2 - I wonder why

   I was wondering why Ambrose Bierce wrote about different things in his story in a way that you would think you understood what was happening and then there would be a surprise or plot twist. Examples that I can think of are when Peyton hears that death toll sound that ends up being his watch and the soldier that came and told about the bridge ended up being the enemy. Really the whole story is a surprise when you reach the end!

   I think that it is interesting and neat how Ambrose Bierce would use just one simple sentence to change what you thought about many sentences. Maybe he did it so the story would make more of an impact, I know it made more of an impact on me when I would suddenly realize the truth of an event or sound. Could be he just wanted us to wonder why he did itJ.

Job #1 - Live or Die

"To be hanged and drowned," he thought, "that is not so bad…”

“He was not conscious of an effort, but a sharp pain in his wrist apprised him that he was trying to free his hands. He gave the struggle his attention, as an idler might observe the feat of a juggler, without interest in the outcome. What splendid effort! - what magnificent, what superhuman strength! Ah, that was a fine endeavor! Bravo! The cord fell away; his arms parted and floated upward, the hands dimly seen on each side in the growing light. He watched them with a new interest as first one and then the other pounced upon the noose at his neck. They tore it away and thrust it fiercely aside, its undulations resembling those of a water snake. "Put it back, put it back!" He thought he shouted these words to his hands, for the undoing of the noose had been succeeded by the direst pang that he had yet experienced.” (I don’t have chapters but it was pages 6 and 7)

 
   I find it interesting how in this passage it shows the human survival instinct. Our bodies are so wired to live that we fight, sometimes drastically, to survive. When Peyton was underwater, even though his mind had not thought of freeing himself, his hands were already taking action to get free. Then when Peyton did notice his efforts it was still like his hands, instead of his mind, were in charge of getting the rope off. Peyton’s body wanted to live so much that he didn’t even have think about how to do it. This passage shows, in a rather creative way, how hard our body will fight to survive.

   Also I noticed that this passage shows us another human instinct, the instinct to flee pain. As humans we don’t like pain and will try not to put ourselves in pain. Peyton wanted to just die and not have to feel any more pain so his mind was trying to tell his hands to put the noose back around his neck. I found it interesting how those two instincts were fighting against one and other, the survival instinct made Peyton want to live while the need to flee pain made Peyton want to die.