# The Realm of the Unreal explained — Can Such Things Be?

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

## What happens

A narrative exploring the blurred boundaries between reality and illusion, where characters confront unsettling phenomena that challenge their perceptions of the world.

## Themes in this chapter

### Madness and Perception

Characters grapple with distorted realities and question their own sanity.

### The Uncanny and the Grotesque

Unsettling events and objects blur the line between the familiar and the strange.

## Character check-ins

### Halpin Frayser

Central figure experiencing dream-like states and supernatural encounters.

### Julia Hetman

Victim of a mysterious murder, whose death is investigated.

### Moxon

Inventor of a chess-playing machine that exhibits eerie behavior.

## Key lines

> The realm of the unreal is not that of the impossible; it is that of the improbable.

The unreal world consists of unlikely events, not impossible ones.

_Defines the story's philosophical stance on reality._

> He had a strange feeling that he was not alone.

He sensed an unseen presence nearby.

_Highlights the theme of isolation and terror._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/can_such_things_be_se/chapters/the-realm-of-the-unreal
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/can_such_things_be_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/can_such_things_be_se/chapters