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Nathaniel Hawthorne: Earth’s Holocaust

“Earth’s Holocaust” is an allegorical short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne, published in May 1844 in Graham’s Magazine and collected in Mosses from an Old Manse (1846). The story begins with the organization of a huge bonfire, where crowds from all over the world gather to destroy ancient symbols of power, prestige, and tradition. In a reformist fervor seeking the moral regeneration of humanity, material objects, and entire institutions are thrown into the fire: noble titles, royal emblems, weapons, beverages, books, and even religious symbols. However, something essential remains intact, hidden from the power of the flames.

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.

H. P. Lovecraft: The Music of Erich Zann. Summary and analysis

A young student of metaphysics moves to an old, steep street called Rue d’Auseil, where he rents a room in an almost deserted building. He soon becomes intrigued by the strange music he hears every night from the attic, played by a mute violinist named Erich Zann. Fascinated by these disturbing and unfamiliar melodies, the student tries to approach the musician, who is evasive and disturbed, refusing to play certain compositions in his presence and forbidding him to look out of his room’s window, the only one facing the other side of the wall that closes off the street. Over time, the narrator begins to suspect that Zann’s music is not only artistic but also a defense against something invisible and terrifying. One night, he finally witnesses Zann’s violin become an instrument of despair in the face of a force that bursts through the window. Looking through it, the narrator sees an infinite and chaotic abyss, not the city. He flees in terror and never finds the street again. Zann’s secret disappears with him, leaving the narrator forever marked by what he witnessed.

Kate Chopin: Désirée’s Baby

“Désirée’s Baby” is a short story by Kate Chopin, published on January 14, 1893, in Vogue magazine and later included in the collection Bayou Folk (1894). Set in 19th-century Louisiana, it tells the story of Désirée, a young woman of unknown origin adopted by the Valmondé family, who grows up to become a sweet and beautiful woman. Désirée marries Armand Aubigny, a wealthy man, and the two seem happy after the birth of their son. However, an unexpected uneasiness begins to cloud Désirée’s happiness when the consequences of an intimate secret begin to surface.

James Baldwin: Sonny’s Blues. Summary and analysis

In James Baldwin’s Sonny’s Blues, a high school teacher in Harlem learns that his younger brother, Sonny, has been arrested for heroin use. The news leads him to recall their childhood and youth together, marked by poverty, violence, and emotional silence. After the death of his daughter, the narrator reconnects with Sonny, and the two attempt to rebuild their relationship. Through an intimate conversation, Sonny reveals his struggle with drugs, the suffering that has accompanied him since he was young, and how music—especially jazz—allows him to express what he cannot say with words. The story ends when the teacher accompanies Sonny to a nightclub, and seeing him play the piano with intensity and emotion, he finally understands his brother’s inner world. Music is revealed as a language of pain and redemption, and the professor hears Sonny’s truth for the first time through it.

H. P. Lovecraft: The Music of Erich Zann

“The Music of Erich Zann” is a short story by H. P. Lovecraft, published in March 1922 in The National Amateur magazine. The story follows a young metaphysics student who, searching for cheap lodgings, moves into a dilapidated boarding house on Rue d’Auseil, a steep and strangely inaccessible street. He meets Erich Zann, a mute violinist living in the highest attic room. Fascinated by the disturbing music he hears every night from his room, the narrator tries to get closer to the mysterious musician, unaware that behind each note lies an alien and terrifying reality.