# Mysterious Disappearances explained — Can Such Things Be?

> Chapter companion for Can Such Things Be? by Ambrose Bierce.

## What happens

This chapter collects several tales of inexplicable vanishings, where individuals disappear without trace under strange circumstances, often leaving behind only baffling clues or no evidence at all.

## Themes in this chapter

### Isolation and Terror

The sudden, inexplicable absence of individuals underscores a profound isolation from the known world, evoking terror of the unknown.

### The Uncanny and the Grotesque

The mundane act of walking or traveling becomes uncanny when it leads to a complete and inexplicable disappearance, challenging reality.

## Character check-ins

### Charles Ashmore

Young Charles Ashmore vanishes from his home, leaving footprints that abruptly stop in the snow.

### James Burne Worson

Worson disappears during a run, last seen by witnesses before vanishing mid-stride.

### William Holt

Holt mysteriously disappears while traveling, with his horse and belongings found abandoned.

## Key lines

> Young Charles Ashmore vanishes from his home, leaving footprints that abruptly stop in the snow.

Charles Ashmore disappears from his house, and his footprints in the snow end suddenly, as if he vanished into thin air.

_Illustrates the baffling nature of the disappearance with a physical clue that defies explanation._

> Worson disappears during a run, last seen by witnesses before vanishing mid-stride.

While running, Worson is observed by others and then simply vanishes while still in motion.

_Highlights the suddenness and impossibility of the event, as witnessed by multiple people._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/can_such_things_be_se/chapters/mysterious-disappearances
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/can_such_things_be_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/can_such_things_be_se/chapters