This excerpt from section 3 of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge", contributes to the theme of fate because <em>It suggests that Farquhar is wrestling with forces larger than himself.</em> In the first section, Peyton Farquhar is on a railroad bridge twenty feet above the water. His wrists are tied on his back and in his neck, there is a noose. He is surrounded by soldiers of the Northern army. His execution is going to take place very soon. In section 2, the narrator introduces Farquhar using a flashback to tell us that he is a planter devoted to the Southern cause. In section 3, the narrator goes back to the present and Farquhar is falling from the bridge. He is feeling pain but everything looks strange for him, the stars above him, the language that he hears, and everything appear to have a malign significance.
Answer:
well but your questions are already given with commas
Because of its rapacious appetite, the shark is often considered to be more of an eating machine than a living creature
An absolute phrase modifies a noun, and it doesn't contain a verb. Having this in mind, the absolute phrase in this sentence is those living and dead.