In the first section, the mood is unsettling and tense. The narrator’s blunt descriptions of the soldiers preparing to execute Farquhar give a sense of absurdity, creating a tense mood for the reader as they see the extensive, precise preparations for the execution. The ticking watch and his growing panic further create a foreboding mood, as the narrator describes that the delays between each tick of the watch are “maddening” and “hurt his ear like the thrust of a knife.” The imminent arrival of death hangs over the narration, creating a foreboding, unsettling mood.
The mood shifts with the flashback that reveals that Farquhar is, in fact, an enslaver. Given that the author was a Union soldier himself, this detail about Farquhar makes him a less compelling character. This also increases the tension and suspense about what will happen to him, as readers learn that he is a Confederate supporter who attempted to take over the Owl Creek bridge to stop the Union advance and got caught. The background informationprovided in this section immediately shifts the mood of the story by making Farquhar a bit less sympathetic.
Then, during Farquhar’s escape, the mood is more hopeful but maintains its unsettling, tense feeling. As Farquhar attempts to escape, his thoughts are surprisingly calm and formal, which contrasts with his dire situation. He describes bullets as only “shining bits of metal” slowly sinking in the water: an almost beautiful image that sharply contrasts with the violence one would usually associate with a bullet. When he gets shot, he simply describes the blood as “uncomfortably warm.” These understatements add to the unsettling mood by indicating that something is wrong and hinting at Farquhar's altered perception.
At the end of the story, the mood crescendos into a seemingly hopeful ending, but then Farquhar is yanked back into the grim reality of death, bringing readers back to the tense and unsettling mood.
