Ambrose Bierce's short story, “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge,” combines reality and illusion. The narrative describes Peyton Farquhar's attempt to escape the reality of his suspension in the illusion. As Farquhar attempts to bend reality to obey his will, he renders both reality and illusion indistinct. “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” helps readers better understand what really exists, what fantasy is in life, and helps people rethink their own existence. We all dream and are taught to never give up. Unfortunately, we cannot distinguish what can and cannot be controlled at all times. Bierce combines reality and illusion together with two components of the combination: time and sensory impression. “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” intertwines reality and illusion until the end, when Farquhar is hanged. Reality is what really exists and illusion is what we pursue. Everyone has a distorted sense of reality and an illusion because people's ideal image of reality is that we can create and control everything. Similar to people, Farquhar is desperately desperate to separate himself from reality. So, Farquhar imagines his escape hoping that he can regain control of his situation. Farquhar or people want their fantasies to be authentic to cope with reality, making it extremely difficult to separate them later. When Farquhar or people learn the difference, the reality is now harder to accept. Then, when Farquhar returns to reality, he learns that even with his imaginative escape there can only be one ending. He will die. In an attempt to control reality Farquhar begins to imagine himself in a timeless realm. Where every second of thought is uninterrupted in its flight. Do you think that with ti...... half of the card ......w? To the reader, some parts of Farquhar's story seem real and others less so. Farquhar's inaccurate sensory impression shows that this is an illusion. For example, “He felt the ripples on his face and heard their separate sounds as they hit.” (Bierce, Ambrose. “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge.” Timeless Voices, Timeless Themes: World Masterpiece. Ed Prentice Hall. New York: Prentice Hall, 2005. 564-572. Print). However, as the illusion shows its fantasy as a surge of strength arising from weakness and reality shows this creation as desperation to escape life. We can never truly distinguish between the two. Bierce's ability to confuse reality and illusion makes the reader reflect on his own existence. Highlighting for readers the confusion between reality and Farquhar's illusion helps readers better understand what really exists and what is fantasy in life.