# We Burst in Upon Ghosts explained — Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc

> Chapter companion for Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc by Mark Twain.

## What happens

After resting from battle, the group reluctantly investigates a haunted room in Catherine Boucher's house. They hear mysterious sounds from a sealed dungeon, break through the wall, and find only a rusty sword and a rotten fan, leaving the mystery unsolved.

## Themes in this chapter

### Courage and Resilience

The group overcomes fear of the supernatural to investigate the haunted room, showing bravery in the face of the unknown.

### Innocence and Purity

The pathetic relics—a rusty sword and a rotten fan—evoke a sense of lost innocence and forgotten lives.

## Character check-ins

### The Paladin

Rehearses his battle deeds, piling up exaggerated numbers of dead enemies.

### Catherine Boucher

Leads the group to the haunted room and explains the tradition of the ghosts.

### Jean de Metz

Proposes breaking down the wall to free the supposed captives.

### Louis de Conte

Narrates the chapter, expressing fear and discomfort during the haunting.

## Key lines

> I could have been willing to let the matter of the ghost drop; and the others were of a like mind, no doubt, for they talked diligently of the battle and said nothing of that other thing.

I would have preferred to avoid the ghost topic, and the others seemed to agree, as they focused on discussing the battle instead.

_Louis expresses reluctance to confront the supernatural, highlighting the group's shared unease._

> But those sounds were so real and so human and so moving that the idea of ghosts passed straight out of our minds, and Sir Jean de Metz spoke out and said: 'Come! we will smash that wall and set those poor captives free.'

The sounds were so convincingly human and sorrowful that we forgot about ghosts, and Jean de Metz urged us to break down the wall to rescue the prisoners.

_The shift from supernatural fear to compassionate action underscores the power of human empathy._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/personal_recollections_of_joan_of_arc_se/chapters/xix-we-burst-in-upon-ghosts
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/personal_recollections_of_joan_of_arc_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/personal_recollections_of_joan_of_arc_se/chapters