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Can Such Things Be? · Chapter

I: How Trees Are Felled in China explained

The narrator describes a mysterious ravine near Jo Dunfer's property, which he believes holds a secret.

What happens

The narrator describes a mysterious ravine near Jo Dunfer's property, which he believes holds a secret. Jo Dunfer, a local known as 'Whisky Jo,' harbors a deep hatred for Chinese immigrants. He recounts how he employed a Chinese man named Ah Wee, whom he eventually killed due to perceived insubordination. Later, the narrator discovers Ah Wee's grave in the ravine, marked with a crude and offensive epitaph. The chapter ends with the narrator leaving the area, disturbed by the experience.

Themes in this chapter

  • Guilt and Retribution

    Jo Dunfer's confession of murdering Ah Wee and the haunting presence of Ah Wee's eye through a knothole suggest unresolved guilt and potential supernatural retribution.

  • The Uncanny and the Grotesque

    The ravine's mysterious atmosphere, the grotesque epitaph on Ah Wee's grave, and the appearance of a disembodied eye all evoke the uncanny.

  • Violence and Mortality

    Jo Dunfer's violent act of murder and the discovery of Ah Wee's grave highlight themes of death and brutality.

Characters to notice

  • Jo Dunfer

    Whisky Jo, a local rancher and saloon keeper, who narrates his hatred for Chinese immigrants and his murder of Ah Wee.

  • Whisky Jo

    Alternate name for Jo Dunfer, emphasizing his drinking habit.

  • Ah Wee

    Deceased Chinese laborer who worked for Jo Dunfer; his grave is discovered by the narrator.

Key passages

  • “I never used to ride through it without looking first to the one side and then to the other, to see if the time had arrived for the revelation.”

    The narrator always checked both sides of the ravine, anticipating a secret to be revealed.

    Establishes the narrator's superstitious fascination with the ravine.

  • “He was a hairy man, with a stoop in his walk, like that of one who is about to spring upon something and rend it.”

    Jo Dunfer's posture suggested he was ready to pounce and tear something apart.

    Describes Jo Dunfer's menacing physical appearance.

  • “I had one of them on this ranch five years ago, and I'll tell you about it, so that you can see the nub of this whole question.”

    Jo Dunfer begins his story about a Chinese worker to illustrate his views on Chinese immigration.

    Introduces the central anecdote of the chapter.

  • “This monument is erected by him to keep the Chink's memory green. Likewise as a warning to Celestials not to take on airs. Devil take 'em! She Was a Good Egg.”

    The epitaph on Ah Wee's grave is a crude and contradictory mix of remembrance, threat, and misogyny.

    Highlights the grotesque and offensive nature of the grave marker.

  • “I think I must have covered my face with my hands to shut out the horrible illusion, if such it was, and Jo.'s little white man-of-all-work coming into the room broke the spell.”

    The narrator is terrified by the eye in the knothole and is relieved when a servant enters.

    Depicts the narrator's fear and the uncanny moment.

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