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Ambrose Bierce

1842 - 1914

Ambrose Bierce is best known for his short story An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge (1891), which stands out for its distinctive narrative style and unexpected ending. Another notable work is The Devil’s Dictionary (1906), a satirical collection of definitions that uses irony and humor to examine social beliefs and traditions. His collection Tales of Soldiers and Civilians is also widely recognized for its vivid portrayal of wartime experiences and the psychological effects of conflict.

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War is Gods way of teaching Americans geography

— Ambrose Bierce

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Ambrose Bierce

Democracy is four wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch.

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Ambrose Bierce

Absurdity, n.: A statement or belief manifestly inconsistent with one’s own opinion.

Belief Bias Challenging Judgment Wry

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Ambrose Bierce

What is a democrat? One who believes that the republicans have ruined the country. What is a republican? One who believes that the democrats would ruin the country.

Believe Country Democracy Oneself Ruin Sardonic

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Ambrose Bierce

Riot – A popular entertainment given to the military by innocent bystanders.

Critical Entertainment Innocent Military Popular

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Ambrose Bierce

Divorce: a resumption of diplomatic relations and rectification of boundaries.

Boundary Divorce Relationship Wry

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Ambrose Bierce

IMAGINATION, n. A warehouse of facts, with poet and liar in joint ownership.

Art Imagination Playful Reflective Truth

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Ambrose Bierce

War is God’s way of teaching Americans geography.

Bitter God Place Teaching War

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Ambrose Bierce

Ocean: A body of water occupying about two-thirds of a world made for man – who has no gills.

Humanity Ironic Nature Perspective

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Ambrose Bierce

Patience, n. A minor form of dispair, disguised as a virtue.

Cynical Disguised Patience Virtue

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Ambrose Bierce

LIFE, n. A spiritual pickle preserving the body from decay. We live in daily apprehension of its loss; yet when lost it is not missed.

Life Macabre mortality Satire Wry

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Ambrose Bierce

MYTHOLOGY, n. The body of a primitive people’s beliefs concerning its origin, early history, heroes, deities and so forth, as distinguished from the true accounts which it invents later.

Belief Critical History Myth Skeptical

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Ambrose Bierce

REALISM, n. The art of depicting nature as it is seem by toads. The charm suffusing a landscape painted by a mole, or a story written by a measuring-worm.

Art Charm Measurement Nature Skeptical Worm

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Ambrose Bierce

To the eye of failure success is an accident.

Accident Challenging Eyes Failure Perspective Success

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Ambrose Bierce

You don’t have to be stupid to be a Christian, but it probably helps.

Derisive Help Religion Stupidity

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Ambrose Bierce

REFLECTION,n: An Action of the mind whereby we obtain a clearer view of our relation to the things of yesterday and are able to avoid the perils that we shall not again encounter.

Experience Hindsight Ironic Reflection

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Ambrose Bierce

RUMOR, n. A favorite weapon of the assassins of character.

Cautionary Critical Reputation Rumor Truth

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Ambrose Bierce

Speak when you are angry and you will make the best speech you will ever regret.

Angry Best Cautionary Regret Talk Yourself

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Ambrose Bierce

Religion. A daughter of Hope and Fear, explaining to Ignorance the nature of the Unknowable.

Fear Hope Ironic Religion Skeptical

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Ambrose Bierce

There are two instruments worse than a clarinet – two clarinets.

Instrument Playful Worst

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Ambrose Bierce

Responsibility, n. A detachable burden easily shifted to the shoulders of God, Fate, Fortune, Luck or one’s neighbor. In the days of astrology it was customary to unload it upon a star.

Accountability Blame Critical Ironic Responsibility

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About Ambrose Bierce

Notable Works

Ambrose Bierce was a brutally honest American journalist, Union Civil War veteran, and pioneer of realist fiction famed for his dark, macabre storytelling. Nicknamed "Bitter Bierce" for his devastating wit and deeply pessimistic worldview, his raw experiences in combat profoundly shaped his unsentimental writing style. In late 1913, at the age of 71, he traveled to Mexico to observe the ongoing revolution and vanished without a trace, cementing his life as one of American literature's greatest mysteries.

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