The Damned Thing by Ambrose Bierce
The Damned Thing is a short story by American writer Ambrose Bierce. It tells the story of a mysterious creature that terrorizes a small Texas town. The story begins with a group of men discussing a strange creature that has been seen in the area. They are unable to agree on what it is, but they all agree that it is dangerous. The creature is eventually tracked down by a group of hunters, who find it in a clearing. It is described as a large, dark, and shapeless mass that moves quickly and silently. The hunters are unable to kill it, and it escapes. The creature continues to terrorize the town, killing livestock and people. Eventually, a group of men decide to hunt it down and kill it. They track it to a cabin, where they find it hiding in the attic. They shoot it, but it does not die. Instead, it disappears in a strange, glowing mist. The story ends with the men wondering what the creature was and where it came from.
By Ambrose Bierce · First published 1893 · Genre: Horror, Mystery, Fantasy · 4 chapters · 3,887 words
First lines
By THE light of a tallow candle, which had been placed on one end of a rough table, a man was reading something written in a book. It was an old account book, greatly worn; and the writing was not, apparently, very legible, for the man sometimes held the page close to the flame of the candle to get a stronger light upon it. The shadow of the book would then throw into obscurity a half of the room, darkening a number of faces and figures; for besides the reader, eight other men were present. Seven of them sat against the rough log walls, silent and motionless, and, the room being small, not very far from the table. By extending an arm any one of them could have touched the eighth man, who lay on the table, face upward, partly covered by a sheet, his arms at his sides. He was dead.
What this Textopian page supports
The Damned Thing is listed on Textopian as a short story by Ambrose Bierce, dated 1893 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Short story
- Author: Ambrose Bierce
- Date: 1893 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Horror, Mystery, Fantasy, Gothic, Science Fiction
- Length: 3,887 words
- Structure: 4 chapters, 70 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Standard (8th-9th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for The Damned Thing by Ambrose Bierce
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
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Discussion starters
- What should a reader notice first when entering The Damned Thing?
- How does this short story by Ambrose Bierce fit its genre, period, or classroom use?
- Where does Horror first become important in the reading?
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Genres
- Horror — The Damned Thing is a horror story by Ambrose Bierce, featuring a mysterious creature that terrorizes a small town in the American West.
- Mystery — The Damned Thing is a mystery story, as the protagonist attempts to uncover the truth behind the mysterious creature that is terrorizing the town.
- Fantasy — The Damned Thing is a fantasy story, as it features a supernatural creature that cannot be explained by science or logic.
- Gothic — The Damned Thing is a gothic story, as it features a mysterious creature that is terrorizing a small town in the American West, and the protagonist's attempts to uncover the truth behind it.
Tags
Horror · Horror tales · Short stories · away · book · candle · coroner · could · dead · go · gun · hand