What Makes Ambrose Bierce a Realist Author "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" can be considered a work of realism for three reasons. The first is Bierce's utilization of his own military background giving this story a sense of authenticity. Bierce also conveys his cynicism after leading the reader to believe otherwise. Finally, this story provides social critique of the south during the Civil War. Bierce goes to great lengths to describe the opening sequence …showed first 75 words of 1061 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1061 total…to lose sight of what is really important, his family. The delusion of his escape from execution finally made him realize that he wanted nothing else than to be with his family. Unfortunately, Bierces cynical style of writing only lets him find out when its too late. Bibliography Works Cited Bierce, Ambrose. "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge." Norton Anthology of American Literature: Volume 2. Ed. Nina Baym, et al. New York: W. W Norton, 1998. 268-275.