# CCXL explained — Poetry

> Chapter companion for Poetry by Ambrose Bierce.

## What happens

The chapter reflects on the fear of darkness as more than mere superstition, suggesting that night is when the king truly thinks.

## Key lines

> Fear of the darkness is more than an inherited superstition⁠—it is at night, mostly, that the king thinks.

The fear of darkness goes beyond ancestral belief; it is primarily during the night that the king contemplates.

_This line introduces a reflection on the psychological significance of darkness and the solitude of thought._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se/chapters/ccxl
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se/chapters