What does it matter?

Honestly, what does it matter. Here I have just spent hours of my life pouring out my honest thought process while trying to study and better understand realism and romanticism, and now I need to close it up. As I sit here trying to compose my thoughts I can't help but wonder, why does it matter. Why does it matter that I understand what realism and romanticism is? Why does it matter that I try to explain what it is to my readers? Why does it matter that the two styles of writing don't exist without the other? Why does it matter that the meaning of such styles would be the same with or without the other style? Why does it matter?

I don't think the point of realism and romanticism was to ever include the theory that they can't exist without each other. I am confident in saying  it is just my theory; however, it is a theory that I created therefore it is valuable. Even if it is just valuable to me, it still matters. 

Realism in "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" is obvious. Ambrose Bierce is known for being a realist author, and I think he made a statement about what realism actually is through this story. As readers we see that realism is the shell that covers romanticism. I have said it several times and I will stand by this forever. Realism and romanticism cannot exist without each other. Realism; however, allows a reader to know what the picture looks like. It gives us a glimpse into what is there. We know what the story is about and what the big picture looks like. Whereas romanticism is the zoom on that lens. Romanticism is much more than just looking at the flowery language used to describe the story. It gives us the chance to look beyond the surface and recognize what the story is truly about. 

That being said, the meaning of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" has two. The first meaning being one about the lesson or moral of the story. I think the meaning is the ability to change our fatality. Peyton was a man with dignity; he knew he was going to die, but he died in a manner that made him feel like he was dying the way he deserved. I think this sends a message of respect yourself enough to the point of when you are at a point in your life and you have no other choice in life but to accept that things can't be changed. You need to respect yourself enough to decide how you will be defeated, even if being defeated is unavoidable. Bierce shows this message through the actions Peyton takes throughout his journey to the end of his life. I am pretty confident that the entire story is a dream in Peyton's mind, and I am also pretty sure it was his way of keeping his dignity to decide to fight to the very last minute. 

The second meaning or message that I gained through my study of this story is the idea that realism and romanticism are surrounding elements in our lives. Realism represents our entire life. It represents the big picture, from start to finish. Romanticism is everything that happens within our lives. Romanticism is the meat, the middle. Without romanticism in our lives we wouldn't have realism and vice versa. I think this was an underlying message that Bierce was making while using the two styles together. They work together because they are meant to be together. 

So the end question, why does it matter? It matters because it is your life. While romanticism and realism are not the terms you will use to describe your actual life in essence all that romanticism and realism encompass is what happens in our lives. With that comes what I think Bierce was actually trying to say with his story; hold to your dignity and live your life the way want to. 

I have really enjoyed dissecting these terms and I really have learned a lot that I know will help me throughout my future...and I hope you did too! 

Thanks for reading! 

-Staci Browning