Job #3 - Literature Connections

I could obviously compare this story to The Red Badge of Courage, but that would be too easy. Then I thought of terrorism. 

During the American Civil War, the Confederate side faced many disadvantages. One of them was a lack of manpower compare to the Union forces. One of the ways the Confederates solved this problem was by sending out small bands of Cavalry, such as Mosby’s Rangers, to harass Union forces and disrupt their supply lines. These groups were aided by the fact that they were fighting on their home soil, and thus, they knew the terrain better than their opponents. (These bands were also led by great commanders such as Jeb Stuart and Nathan Bedford Forrest.) As the war began to turn against the Confederacy, their Cavalry became too precious to send on such small assignments. Therefore, small bands of guerrilla raiders began forming behind Union lines. These groups conducted sabotage, laid ambushes, and basically filled the void left by the Confederate Cavalry. For example, in the short story An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, Peyton Farquhar was hung by Union forces who caught him attempting to destroy a vital railroad bridge. 

In a similar way, Islamic Radicals do not have large, unified armies, due to long-standing doctrinal differences among Muslims. Therefore, they have adopted a somewhat similar strategy of sending terrorists to cause civilian panic, whether by taking innocent hostages and attempting to use them as bargaining chips in exchange for the freedom of imprisoned comrades, or by sending suicide bombers to blow up buildings. The most famous example of a terrorist attack was the 9/11 bombings. This strategy forces major nations like the United States to devote substantial efforts towards preventing terrorist attacks. 

What do you guys think? Is this too farfetched?

Job #2 - Thinking Question

Ambrose Bierce served in the Union Army's 9th Indiana Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the Civil War. The way the author describes the bullets, cannonballs, and grapeshot hitting the water around Farquhar makes me wonder: Do you all think that maybe he had an experience during the war where Confederate forces shot at him while he was swimming in water? 

P.S. If you don't know what grapeshot is, here are a couple pictures: (When fired from a cannon, the balls scatter over a wider area. This was widely used for naval warfare as well, because unlike canister shot (which was a metal canister with pistol balls and shards of lead packed inside), it had the ability to punch through the sides of a ship (at close range) and inflict tremendous damage.)

Job #1 - Line Illuminator

“One evening while Farquhar and his wife were sitting on a rustic bench near the entrance to his grounds, a gray-clad soldier rode up to the gate and asked for a drink of water. …Farquhar …approached the dusty horsemen and inquired eagerly for news from the front.

‘The Yanks …have reached the Owl Creek bridge, put it in order and built a stockade on the north bank. The commandant has issued an order, which is posted everywhere, declaring that any civilian caught interfering with the railroad, its bridges, tunnels or trains will be summerly hanged. I saw the order.’

… ‘Suppose a man-a civilian and student of hanging-should elude the picket post and perhaps get the better of the sentinel,’ said Farquhar, smiling, ‘what could he accomplish?’

The soldier reflected. ‘I was there a month ago,’ he replied. ‘I observed that the flood of last winter had lodged a great quantity of driftwood against the wooden pier at this end of the bridge. It is now dry and would burn like tow.’

The …soldier …bowed …and rode away. An hour later, after nightfall, he repassed the plantation, going northward into the direction from which he had come. He was a Federal scout.” (Chapter II) 

While An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge does not recount Peyton Farquhar's capture itself, this passage revealed the duplicity of the supposed "Confederate" scout. Farquhar foolishly trusted this mysterious soldier, and determined to undertake a task for which he, as a mere civilian, was unprepared. The Union scout, on the other hand, undoubtedly reported Farquhar's inadequately concealed intentions to the Union garrison. Thus, when Farquhar stealthily approached the bridge, he probably discovered Union forces fully prepared for his arrival. 

I selected this passage because this story's chronology is "arranged" (if one can properly use that word to describe this story) in a jumbled, unorganized fashion. However, amidst the chaotic storyline, this passage explained the method by which Farquhar blundered into Union custody. In your opinion, does this passage represent an example of Foreshadowing?

 The theme picture is a painting of the HMS Belvidera (brown hull) fleeing an American fleet under Commodore John Rodgers, whose flagship, USS President (black hull), is leading the chase. 

Nicknamed "Queen of the Frigates", President was a sister ship of the vaunted USS Constitution, one of Washington's six frigates, constructed in New York City, and launched in 1800. (President's design was slightly altered, based on experience gained in designing the other 2 heavy frigates of the class, Constitution, and USS United States.) 

President was the fastest heavy frigate of the class, as Constitution was considered rather slow, and United States accurately bore the nickname "Old Wagon." 

Before Commodore William Bainbridge took command of the USS Constitution (in preparation for the cruise in which he would famously defeat HMS Java), he offered Commodore Rodgers (who commanded President for much of the War of 1812) $5,000 to swap ships. (This took place in 1812, and that amount of money would be worth $97,849.62 in today's money!)

Bainbridge "preferred to have command of the President, which he thought was 'one of the finest ships in the world.'" (“The Constitution and the Java.” 1812: The Navy's War, by George Daughan, Basic Books, 2013, pp. 138–138.) Rodgers wisely refused to switch ships. 

Rodgers' and President's only moment of glory occurred before the war, in 1811, in the controversial Little Belt Affair. (Basically a reverse of the Chesepeake-Leopard Incident) During the War of 1812, Rodgers made 4 cruises with the President (once sailing all the way around the British Isles), taking 13 prizes. Although a seemingly unglamorous record, it actually contributed more to the war effort than the famous frigate duels, as the Royal Navy was forced to divert many warships to search for him. Although he never fought a great frigate action like he so desperately craved, Rodgers always brought President, the "Queen of the Frigates," safely home. 

 Welcome!