“As Peyton Fahrquhar fell straight downward through the
bridge he lost consciousness and was as one already dead. From this state he was awakened -- ages
later, it seemed to him – by the pain of a sharp pressure upon his throat,
followed by a sense of suffocation.” (Chapter 3)
This passage speaks of when the rope broke and Peyton fell into the water. He supposedly went on to escape death under gunfire. We found out later that these events never actually happened and it was only an illusion.
"As he is about to clasp her he feels a stunning blow upon the back of the neck; a blinding white light blazes all about him with a sound like the shock of a cannon -- then all is darkness and silence!" (Chapter 3)
Did Peyton imagine everything just before he fell? Did he imagine it as he was falling? Did it all come to him before he fell into his coma? Did he dream it in his unconsciousness?
The beginning and end overlap with two different stories so it is hard to distinguish what exactly happened. I personally think he dreamt it all up in his unconsciousness and dies at the end. I am interested in hearing your theories on what exactly happened.
I thought about this very same thing! I think that maybe it could be that Peyton thought of this whole scene as he is dropping. Before he is hung he notices how his watches ticking gets farther between making it seem like time slowed down for him. As the time slows down he has more time to process his thoughts. Kind of like his life (and then some) passed before his eyes in that short amount of time. I hope that you were able to follow that. -Sarah H.
ReplyDeleteThere's actually research suggesting that when subject to increased adrenaline levels, people's cognative speed picks up substantially. This simulates time moving faster for the person in question.
DeleteI think that all this happened as a result of his hanging at the end of the rope and him being deprived of oxygen and hallucinating. After he makes his way onto the shore up until the very end, his surroundings seem a little bit off and surreal.
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize that the whole story was not real until the end. So I thought that why it seemed surreal was because he had had escaped death so narrowly that his mind was suddenly taking everything in and noticing more because he was glad to be alive. Wow that was a run on sentence!
DeleteI really like your idea Forrest! My only question is about him breaking his neck. Doesn't someone usually break there neck when they fall onto the rope, not after they have been hanging for a bit?
DeleteYes, however that is if after the board was dropped he fell a few feet. If the rope was barely loose then it is possible he was choked.
DeleteIt says the rope was slack all the way to his knee-
Delete"A rope closely encircled his neck. It was attached to a stout cross-timber above his head and the slack feel to the level of his knees."
Super, super insights & conversation, guys! Great work! Kayla - you mention the overlapping stories. You are absolutely correct. Does anyone have ideas as to why Bierce begins in the middle of the story?
ReplyDeleteIn the story it says that Peyton isn't the criminal type. Makes me wonder what he did to deserve to get executed. Maybe Bierce did this so the reader can try to fill in that part of the stories themselves.
DeleteIn chapter 2 Peyton is talking to a soldier who says that anyone found near the railroad or its bridges will be hanged. Peyton could have been trying to scout out the soldiers and collect information.
DeleteEven after reading through the while book, it's strange why he deviated from his typical personality.
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