The fear of the unfamiliar and the fear of becoming obsolete are two ideas that may invoke true horror and terror. Within Ambrose Bierce’s short story “An Inhabitant of Carcosa,” both of these concepts come to life as the narrator perceives his newfound environment and tries to understand the situation he has found himself in. Through the use of the unfamiliar as well as a growing sense of unease and obsoleteness, Bierce leads the narrator, as well as his readers, through a story that invokes a dark sense of horror. When the narrator awakes in a desolate land, he quickly perceives that he recognizes nothing around him. This leads to the narrator to see everything around in him a darker way, for the unfamiliar landscape holds nothing of value or significance; instead, the narrator is a stranger in this world and so the things around him appear to be “mysterious,” “disquieting,” and even “malevolent” (Bierce 2). With this perception from the narrator, Bierce takes the readers on a path through the unfamiliar. The narrator, himself, knows nothing about his surroundings and this leads to uneasiness within the reader, as well. The entire story takes on a somber and foreign appeal. The true horror of “An Inhabitant of …show more content…
He looks up and realizes that the unfamiliar landscape around him is suddenly all too familiar, for “these were the ruins of the ancient and famous city of