Ambrose Bierce | Lecturia

Ambrose Bierce: An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge

“An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” is a short story by the American writer Ambrose Bierce, published in 1891 in the book *Tales of Soldiers and Civilians*. During the Civil War, a man stands on a railroad bridge in Alabama, his hands bound and a noose around his neck, while a federal detachment prepares to execute him. The condemned man, Peyton Farquhar, is a Southern plantation owner who, unable to enlist in the Confederate ranks, has sought to serve the Confederate cause as a civilian. As strict military protocols are followed, he awaits the carrying out of his sentence and directs his final thoughts toward his wife and children.

Ambrose Bierce: The Eyes of the Panther

“The Eyes of the Panther” is a short story by Ambrose Bierce, published on October 17, 1897, in the San Francisco Examiner. Jenner Brading and Irene Marlowe are in love, but she stubbornly refuses to marry him. Pressed by Jenner to explain the reason for her refusal, Irene recounts a strange and macabre episode from her family’s past that took place in an isolated cabin in the woods—an experience that left a deep mark on her life and seems to bar her from any marital commitment.

Ambrose Bierce: The Boarded Window

In “The Boarded Window”, a short story published in 1891, Ambrose Bierce transports us to the vast and lonely forests near Cincinnati in 1830, where the untamed wilderness serves as the backdrop for an unsettling tale. The story follows Murlock, a reclusive widower who lives in an isolated cabin, cut off from all company. Once a lively pioneer, Murlock has aged prematurely after the death of his wife, a tragic event shrouded in mysterious and terrifying circumstances that changed his life forever.

Ambrose Bierce: Beyond the Wall

“Beyond the Wall” is a short story by Ambrose Bierce, published in December 1907 in Cosmopolitan magazine. The story begins with a man visiting his old friend Mohun Dampier on a stormy night in San Francisco. Upon arriving at the gloomy and lonely house where Dampier lives, the visitor realizes that his old companion has undergone disturbing changes. In the dim light of a tower battered by wind and rain, a knock on the wall arouses his curiosity. Intrigued, he listens intently to his friend’s story, which reveals a painful memory related to that mysterious signal.

Ambrose Bierce: An Inhabitant of Carcosa

An Inhabitant of Carcosa is a haunting story by Ambrose Bierce, published in the San Francisco Newsletter on 25 December 1886. The story recounts the experience of a man who awakens in a desolate and mysterious landscape populated by withered grasses, dry trees, and ruins that seem to speak of a forgotten past. Lost in these bleak surroundings, the protagonist searches for the path to the ancient city of Carcosa as he ponders the nature of life, death, and his existence, confronting an enigma that transcends time and reality.

Ambrose Bierce: The Death of Halpin Frayser

“The Death of Halpin Frayser” is a disturbing Gothic horror story by Ambrose Bierce, published on December 19, 1891, in The Wave. Lost in a forest, Halpin Frayser falls asleep and wakes up with one word on his lips: “Catherine Larue.” Unable to remember why he uttered that name, he falls back asleep and has a series of strange and disturbing dreams. At the same time, two men investigate a mysterious nearby cemetery in search of a criminal. The sinister atmosphere of the forest and cemetery intensifies with each discovery, revealing hidden connections and supernatural presences that defy logic and keep the reader in constant suspense.