検索キーワード： 著者 "Ambrose Bierce" すべてのカテゴリー

A deserted cabin deep in the woods. One door, one window. The window is boarded up. The former resident - a recluse - is deceased. Is there a story here? Estate liquidators make a living disposing of the personal effects of deceased persons. Typically these are elderly people who may have lived alone, and were considered a bit strange because of their aloofness. But as the liquidator goes through the effects of the deceased, they occasionally find a story. Here, Ambrose Bierce explorers some possibilities.

Ambrose Bierce's classic weird tale, first published in 1886, brings us the eerie visons of a feverish man, and introduces to the world the strange realm of Carcosa. Following this telling is a commentary tracing the origins, influence and importance of this Bierce story.

In this missive Ambrose Bierce recounts two days in his life, April 6 and April 7, 1862, perhaps the two most significant days of his life. He and over 100,000 other combatants have gathered about a small church near the town of Corinth, "a wretched place--the capital of a swamp, two days' march west of the Tennessee River". The church is Shiloh, and it will lend its name to the great battle that took place there.

Originally published in 1892 in Tales of Soldiers and Civilians, "A Lady from Redhorse" is Ambrose Bierce at his best. Mary Jane Dement, daughter of Calamity Jim, grew up in the gold mines where Jim hit it big, and Mary Jane is a millionaire with few prospects for true romance. In her letters to her friend Irene, we learn how love can happen.

Ambrose Bierce dabbled very often in stories about ghosts. This story starts with a duel, a bet of sorts, to stay in a haunted house, and ends up a tragic joke. People regularly die of fear in Bierce stories, so beware as you listen to this story masterfully told by Markham Anderson.

From Tales of Soldiers and Civilians - In the Midst of Life, this, the second tale of the "Civilians" section, takes us into the paranormal as the protagonist becomes a witness to a possible murder. But is it murder when an individual has such power over another individual as to cause their own death?

"Death is a dignitary who when he comes announced is to be received with formal manifestations of respect, even by those most familiar with him." This line was written by Ambrose Bierce in his short story An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge. Death by execution has historically been ritualized, perhaps to absolve those accomplishing the execution from guilt or blame.

The eyes of a panther, or the mind of a terrified woman. Which is more powerful? Ambrose Bierce leaves you wondering and thinking in this powerful short story.

First Lieutenant George Thurston, the new guy, earns the respect of his fellows by his seeming disregard for his own life. When death takes an unfair advantage and strikes with an unfamiliar weapon, it is even more disquieting to those most familiar with it.

Originally published in the San Francisco Examiner in 1891 as "Tales of Soldiers and Civilians" and retitled in Britain as "In the Midst of Life", this audiobook is a collection of 11 short stories from the tales of civilians. Ambrose Bierce loved to focus on the troubled, and perhaps marginally insane, citizens of his time, and the power of the mind, and love gone wrong. For example, "The Man and the Snake" is a story where the snake never attacks, but the man dies.

"Parker Addison, Philosopher" is short story number nine from the collected works of Ambrose Bierce volume 2. Three men die as one of them philosophizes about his pending execution.

Ambrose Bierce is a wordsmith who paints with a marvelous portrait with words. This short story with its surprise ending draws you in like a month to the flame. The story itself is entertaining, but with a surprise ending one is drawn to rethinking the story, and re-reading again. The American Civil War where brother fought brother father fought son is well represented in this story. After the Civil War Pierce became a journalist in San Francisco, and was a prolific producer of short stories.

An opportunity to right a wrong that had been done, but at what cost.

Written by Ambrose Bierce, and narrated by Mike Vendetti, this story concerns a man from the ancient city of Carcosa who awakens from a sickness-induced sleep to find himself lost in an unfamiliar wilderness. Carcosa was subsequently borrowed by Robert W. Chambers as the setting of his fictional play, The King in Yellow, and features heavily in many of the stories in the book of the same name. These concepts were further expanded upon by H. P. Lovecraft in his Cthulhu Mythos stories.

Criminals should not return to the scene of their crime. Sometimes, it's just too horrible to bear!

“The Man from the Nose” is a short story from the civilian section of Ambrose Bierce’s In the Midst of Life: Tales of Soldiers and Civilians. Like the other tales from this collection, “The Man from the Nose” features a protagonist who is in the prime of his life, when a sudden event shatters his hopes and dreams. As with the rest of the Bierce's stories, the questions and characters presented in “The Man from the Nose” will remain on your mind long after you have stopped listening.

As the American Civil War rages, an officer who longs for the glory of battle has been assigned to staff duties away from the battlefield. Now a captain, he is assigned to a combat unit and faces battle for the first time. He finds there is no glory, only controlled terror for those engaged in war.

Here, a collection of 15 short stories by Ambrose Bierce. Bierce's participation in the Battle of Shiloh forever shaped his writing and his life. The short stories in this audiobook, although fiction, are - for the most part - based on some fact. They stand as a testament to the horror of the American Civil War.

Harker Brayton accepts an offer from an associate to stay at his house. We and Brayton learn that his friend's home is also home to numerous serpents. In fact, a wing of the house - the "Snakery" - is full of the cold blooded creatures, which have been known to wander.

What does one do when issued an order by a superior that is contradictory to what one believes to be right? In this short fictional story from the American Civil War, the protagonist is faced with that very situation. When given an insulting and ridiculous order by his commanding general, he carries the order out. Then, when questioned by a subordinate, he passes it on to him in the same manner. Friendly fire in a fog is just as deadly as fire from the enemy.