# A Sure Method explained — Short Fiction

> Chapter companion for Short Fiction by O. Henry.

## What happens

An editor uses a $20 bill to kill poets who submit poor work, finding it more effective than a gun or club, with the coroner always ruling heart failure.

## Themes in this chapter

### Humor and Irony

The darkly comic premise of killing poets with a $20 bill highlights the absurdity of editorial power and the value placed on poetry.

## Character check-ins

### Unknown Narrator

The narrator describes the editor's actions and the fate of the poet.

## Key lines

> The editor sat in his palatially furnished sanctum bending over a mass of manuscripts, resting his beetling brow upon his hand.

The editor was in his luxurious office, hunched over a pile of manuscripts with a furrowed brow.

_Sets the scene of the editor's workspace and his burden._

> He then drew from his pocket a $20 bill and held it toward the poet. A heavy thud was heard, and at the tinkle of an electric bell the editor’s minions entered and carried the lifeless form of the poet away.

He pulled out a $20 bill and offered it to the poet, who immediately fell dead; the editor's assistants then removed the body.

_Illustrates the editor's lethal method of rejecting poetry._

> It works better than a gun or a club and the coroner always brings in a verdict of heart failure.

This method is more effective than violence, and the coroner always rules the death natural.

_Reveals the editor's cynical justification for his actions._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_41_se/chapters/a-sure-method
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_41_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_41_se/chapters