Throughout literary history, one of the most amazing mysteries that still lingers in great literary minds today is about Ambrose Gwinett Bierce. He disappeared in the early 1900s never to be found again. He is remarkably remembered by his literary works of sarcasm and illusion. Throught his lasting life he wrote many fascinating short stories that reflected his experiences during his time as a soldier in combat during the American Civil War. His two most famous works being “Killed at Resaca” and “An Occurrence at Owl Creek”. Through the use of war-like scenarios, sarcasm and the use of personification, Ambrose Bierce implies them all in his two most famous short stories of his time. “ Killed At Resaca and “An Occurrence At Owl Creek”. Ambrose
In The Killer Angels, Michael Shaara fictionally illustrates the historical facts of the battle at Gettysburg. Shaara gives action and words to characters of another time, and then places these players on the stage of this great battle. Through the use of powerful biblical and non-biblical imagery and themes the epic nature of the battle at Gettysburg and its characters are enhanced. Such imagery and themes, combined with Shaara's fictionalization, help to contribute to why this single battle holds such monumental significance and influence upon the lives of Americans over a century removed from its occurrence.
The inimitable novel “A Confederacy of Dunces” written by author John Kennedy Toole was not even published until after his suicide. The story in the pages of this novel reveals a hilarious, funny, sidesplitting, yet brilliantly crafted fictional masterpiece. The picaresque novel focuses on the life of the main character Ignatius J. Reilly. The character of Ignatius is a protagonist against the modern age. In his writing Toole saturates the narrative of the novel with an absurd sense of humor that stimulates both laughter and sympathy from readers. With his unique writing style Toole seamlessly combines, symbolism, sadness and humor in a literary
Hopkins, Ernest Jerome. The complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce. Nebraska: University of Nebraska, 1970. 305-319. Print.
O’Brien, Tim. “How To Tell a True War Story.” The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. Michael Meyer. Boston: Bedford St. Martins, 2003. p. 420-429.
Ambrose has shown his great admiration for his country, reflecting upon his views for America and writing what he has done to help benefit this country, such as his D-day Museum. He visibly shows his patriotism and his fascination for military history as he recounts stories of World War 2 and the War of 1812 and speaks highly of countries achievements of helping rebuild Europe after the war and gaining independence for colonies held by Japan during the war. He uses imagery, contrasting ideas, and quotes from other historians or Americans to back up his messages he tries to convey to his readers. His background also influenced him very heavily in his writing as well and was what encouraged him to keep on writing to the very end.
Murphy, B. & Shirley J. The Literary Encyclopedia. [nl], August 31, 2004. Available at: http://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=2326. Access on: 22 Aug 2010.
McQuade, Donald, ed. The Harper American Literature. Harper & Row Publishers: New York, 1987, pp. 1308-1311. This paper is the property of NetEssays.Net Copyright © 1999-2002
Many times in life things are not as they seem. What may look simple on the surface may be more complicated deeper within. Countless authors of short stories go on a journey to intricately craft the ultimate revelation as well as the subtle clues meant for the readers as they attempt to figure out the complete “truth” of the story. The various authors of these stories often use different literary techniques to help uncover the revelation their main characters undergo. Through the process of carefully developing their unique characters and through point of view, both Edith Wharton and Ernest Hemingway ultimately convey the significant revelation in the short stories, “Roman Fever” and “Hills Like White Elephants” respectively. The use of these two literary techniques is essential because they provide the readers with the necessary clues to realize the ultimate revelations.
Bierce is most known for his short stories “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” and “Chickamauga.” Even though he did not have that many short stories, he was still a well-known, influential writer. The public loved him; and was very interested by his stories, his personality, his life, and even his death. In 1913 Bierce disappeared over the Mexican border and still, until this day, no one has documented proof on exactly how, when, or where Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce died.
In Bierce’s “One of the Missing”, the protagonist, Jerome Searing, is expose to fear when he is trap under a building that has collapse on him. His evolution, from perfectly sane to completely crazy, is clearly visible.
Lye, John. The ‘Death of the Author’ as an instance of theory. Brocku.ca. Department of English Language and Literature, April 30, 2008. Web. Feb 14. 2011.
Experience is the hidden inspiration in all of literature. Every letter, word, and sentence formed, every plot imagined, and every conflict conceived has a trace amount of its creator’s past ingrained within it. But most of all, authors reflect themselves in the characters they create. The protagonist of any story embodies certain traits and qualities of his or her creator; the virtues and vices, ambitions and failures, strengths and weaknesses of an author are integral parts of their characters lives. When authors’ experiences differ, so do their characters, as seen with Welty and King. Both authors had distinct upbringings, each with their own forms of hardship. The contrasting nature of these authors’ struggles is why their characters are the antithetical. As a result of these
The Horsemen in the Sky by Ambrose Bierce Works Cited Missing "The Horseman in the Sky" by Ambrose Bierce has many meanings in the
Poe, E. (2011). The Masque of the Red Death. In Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing (pp. 233-237). Upper Saddle River: Pearson College Div.
M.H. Abrams et al, eds. The Norton Anthology of English Literature, 7th ed. NY: Norton, 2000. Pgs. 2092-2120.