From here on there is a slow down of time and the narration at times begins to be fictitious. As Stuart C. Woodruff a literary analyst puts it, " somehow the reader is made to participate in the split between imagination and reason, to feel that the escape is real while he knows it is not" [Peter Stoicheff] It is to be noted that Bierce also gives the readers a subtle hint or two about the inconsistence of the account. For example his deliberately introduction of 'distortion of time' and narrational contradiction is obvious when Farquhar looks below and notices the "stream racing madly beneath his feet," while at the same time he seems to observe a slow drifting piece of wood and says 'What a sluggish stream'. For inventing these novel literary techniques Bierce was regarded as the "precursor of modern fiction" [Rena Korb] Farquhar is on the verge of being hanged and it is at this time that the author takes us on an elaborate sojourn of his escape where he manages to fall from the hanging rope, free up his tied hands and noosed neck, swim across the river and escape the gun fires from the soldiers. Then he walks and walks through a seemingly 'interminable' dense forest before he finally reaches his home. Another hint suggesting the illusory nature of the escape is when the author says, 'perhaps he has merely recovered from a delirium'. By using a complex form of narration the author successfully maintains the deception and keeps the suspense alive till the very last. Finally the hint of romanticism is obvious when Farquhar reaches his house. He sports a sigh of relief on seeing her beautiful face. 'ha, how beautiful she is! He springs forward with extended arms'.[George Cheatham] Before he could feel her in his arms the final blow strikes and the author takes us back into reality. Farquhar is hanged, his neck broken and his life ebbing away, ending his wishful thinking and...

Literary elements such as imagination, deception, sarcasm, illusion and reality are skillfully intertwined into the plot. There is a neat blend of reality with fiction and fantasy in this short story. By mounting the tension and creating more suspense the author manages to take the readers on a trip from reality to fiction and sustains the momentum until the final moment when they are jolted back into reality. Ambrose Bierce was way ahead of his time in terms of his literary approach and is rightfully considered the 'precursor of postmodern fiction'.
Bibliography

1) Peter Stoicheff, "Something Uncanny; The Dream Structure in Ambrose Bierce's 'An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge', Studies in Short Fiction, Vol 30 No 3, Summer 1993, pg 349-58.

2) George Cheatham & Judy Cheatham, " Bierce's 'An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge'" Explicator, Vol 33, No 1, Fall 1984, pg 45-7

3) Project ELLSA, "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge; Symbolism,"

Accessed on December 14th 2004,

http://www.auathailand.org/ellsa/ellsa_owl4.html

4) Rena Korb, "Short Stories for Students," Gale Research 1997

5) Rick Hearn, "Ambrose Bierce; 1842-1914?,"

Accessed on December 14th 2004,

http://home.att.net/~lah-rbh/civilwar/bierce/bierce.html