Final answer:
Ambrose Bierce, through Peyton Farquhar's story in An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, reveals the romanticized views of war held by civilians and the resultant harsh awakening to its brutal reality.
Step-by-step explanation:
Through the character of Peyton Farquhar in An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, Ambrose Bierce makes several observations about the fundamental nature of war.
Farquhar, being a member of a respected Alabama family and a supporter of the Southern cause, shows the romanticized view of warfare prevalent in the South.
He is eager for distinction and is frustrated by being unable to join the Confederate army. However, Bierce uses Farquhar's experience to illustrate the brutal reality of war and the disillusionment that comes with it.
Farquhar's storyline is a stark warning against the peril of glamorizing warfare and depicts a sharp contrast between the imagined heroism and the actual horrors of war.
In Bierce's war stories, particularly An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge and Chickamauga, we see the transformation of perception of war from one of nobility and glory to its true grotesque nature.
Characters in these stories start with beliefs steeped in heroism and end with a shocking confrontation with war's grim reality. The use of a civilian character such as Farquhar, who is at heart a soldier, reveals this transition from naïveté to enlightenment under the harsh lessons of conflict.
The romantic notions of war are stripped away, revealing the sheer brutality and ultimately the tragic state of humanity engulfed in conflict.