English Paper
1. What is Peyton Farquhar's occupation?
Peyton Farquhar was a planter.
2. Why is he not a soldier, officer, or part of the army?
Circumstances of an imperious nature prevented him.
3. How much time actually elapses between the opening and closing lines of part III?
Seconds.
4. Describe the setting at the opening of the story.
A man is being executed on a bridge with soldiers all around.
5. Describe Peyton Farquhar's last thoughts.
Peyton Farquhar's last thoughts were that of his wife and children meeting him outside his home.
6. Identify and describe the sound that disturbs the thoughts going through his mind.
The sound of his neck breaking.
7. In the flashback of the story's second section, who visits Peyton Farquhar?
A Federal soldier.
8. What plan does Farquhar conceive as a result of the visit?
To burn down the bridge the Union plans to cross.
9. What does Farquhar imagine in the story's last section?
Farquhar imagines him surviving the hanging and falling into the water and escaping to his family, where he dies.
10. Ironically, what is his real fate?
His neck breaks when he is hung and he is killed,
11. Summarize what you think this story reveals about the psychology of a person in a life or death situation.
Time seems to move very slowly and you seem to imagine something different happening.
12. How does Bierce prepare us for the final outcome of the story?
Bierce prepares us by giving hints of his true fate throughout the story.
13. Do you think the writer tries to enlist your sympathies toward either the Union or Confederate side? Or, does the story seem more focused on a more general theme about the nature of war? Cite details from the story to support your answer.
I think the writer is trying to enlist your sympathies for the Confederates because the writer seems to try and show that the Union was
Peyton Farquhar was a planter.
2. Why is he not a soldier, officer, or part of the army?
Circumstances of an imperious nature prevented him.
3. How much time actually elapses between the opening and closing lines of part III?
Seconds.
4. Describe the setting at the opening of the story.
A man is being executed on a bridge with soldiers all around.
5. Describe Peyton Farquhar's last thoughts.
Peyton Farquhar's last thoughts were that of his wife and children meeting him outside his home.
6. Identify and describe the sound that disturbs the thoughts going through his mind.
The sound of his neck breaking.
7. In the flashback of the story's second section, who visits Peyton Farquhar?
A Federal soldier.
8. What plan does Farquhar conceive as a result of the visit?
To burn down the bridge the Union plans to cross.
9. What does Farquhar imagine in the story's last section?
Farquhar imagines him surviving the hanging and falling into the water and escaping to his family, where he dies.
10. Ironically, what is his real fate?
His neck breaks when he is hung and he is killed,
11. Summarize what you think this story reveals about the psychology of a person in a life or death situation.
Time seems to move very slowly and you seem to imagine something different happening.
12. How does Bierce prepare us for the final outcome of the story?
Bierce prepares us by giving hints of his true fate throughout the story.
13. Do you think the writer tries to enlist your sympathies toward either the Union or Confederate side? Or, does the story seem more focused on a more general theme about the nature of war? Cite details from the story to support your answer.
I think the writer is trying to enlist your sympathies for the Confederates because the writer seems to try and show that the Union was