# XCV explained — Poetry

> Chapter companion for Poetry by Ambrose Bierce.

## What happens

A brief chapter that reflects on the nature of grief and discomfiture, suggesting that they are like coals that will naturally cool if left alone, and chiding the reader for keeping them alive with sighs.

## Themes in this chapter

### Mortality and Regret

The chapter's meditation on grief and discomfiture as coals that cool touches on the theme of mortality and the futility of dwelling on regret.

## Key lines

> Grief and discomfiture are coals that cool: Why keep them glowing with thy sighs, poor fool?

Sorrow and embarrassment naturally fade over time, so why do you keep them alive with your lamentations?

_The narrator admonishes the reader for prolonging their own suffering by dwelling on past troubles._

## Links

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