An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge

Ambrose Bierce's short story An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge was first published in Tales of Soldiers and Civilians in 1891. The collection was later expanded and retitled In the Midst of Life in 1898. The story is about a Southern plantation owner who is being hanged by Union forces as he has his last thoughts. The man imagines his escape in the split second between the rope being tightened and his neck actually breaking.