Gruselkabinett 157 - Das Auge des Panthers

by Ambrose Bierce

USA, 1890: Der Anwalt Jenner Brading ist einigermaßen überrascht, dass Irene Marlowe, die ihn zweifellos liebt, seine Heiratsanträge vehement ablehnt. Indes hat die begehrenswerte junge Frau mit den faszinierenden blauen Augen mehr als einen guten Grund, unverheiratet zu bleiben, wie sie ihm eines Abends in der freien Natur offenbart ...

Mit den bekannten Stimmen von Thomas Balou Martin, Patrick Stanke, Jessica Kessler, Sigrid Burkholder, Uli Krohm, Marc Gruppe und Marlene Bosenius.

1 CD ca. 41 Minuten

Genres: Horror, Short Stories, Audiobook, Fiction, Classics, Gothic

1 pages, Audio CD

First published January 1, 1928

About the author

died perhaps 1914

Caustic wit and a strong sense of horror mark works, including In the Midst of Life (1891-1892) and The Devil's Dictionary (1906), of American writer Ambrose Gwinett Bierce.

People today best know this editorialist, journalist, and fabulist for his short story, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge and his lexicon.

The informative sardonic view of human nature alongside his vehemence as a critic with his motto, "nothing matters," earned him the nickname "Bitter Bierce."

People knew Bierce despite his reputation as a searing critic, however, to encourage younger poet George Sterling and fiction author W.C. Morrow.

Bierce employed a distinctive style especially in his stories. This style often embraces an abrupt beginning, dark imagery, vague references to time, limited descriptions, the theme of war, and impossible events.

Bierce disappeared in December 1913 at the age of 71 years. People think that he traveled to Mexico to gain a firsthand perspective on ongoing revolution of that country.

Theories abound on a mystery, ultimate fate of Bierce. He in one of his final letters stated: "Good-bye. If you hear of my being stood up against a Mexican stone wall and shot to rags, please know that I think it is a pretty good way to depart this life. It beats old age, disease, or falling down the cellar stairs. To be a Gringo in Mexico--ah, that is euthanasia!"

Reviews

[Eliza · Rating 2 out of 5]

*Read For Class*

[Althea Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

"See these eyes so green / I can stare for a thousand years
Colder than the moon... you wouldn't believe what I've been through."

A young woman refuses to marry her suitor, although she professes to love him. Her reason? She believes she is insane, she claims. Of course, there has to be more to her story than that... and this is that story, which starts one dark night in a poor woodsman's cottage on the wild frontier.

[Federico DN · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome.

This was awesome. Eerie and amusing at the same time.

One of the finest by Bierce.

RTC. Soon.

It’s public domain. You can find it HERE.

-----------------------------------------------
PERSONAL NOTE :
[1828] [20p] [Horror] [Recommendable]
-----------------------------------------------

★★★★☆ The Damned Thing.
★★★★☆ An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge. [3.5]
★★★☆☆ Un Habitante de Carcosa y otros Relatos de Terror. <--
★★★☆☆ Civil War Stories. [2.5]

-----------------------------------------------

Genial .

Esto fue genial. Inquietante y divertido al mismo tiempo.

Uno de los mejores de Bierce.

RTC. Pronto.

Es dominio público, lo pueden encontrar ACA.

-----------------------------------------------
NOTA PERSONAL :
[1828] [20p] [Horror] [Recomendable]
-----------------------------------------------

[Benjamin Stahl · Rating 4 out of 5]

These old-age horror stories work so well because those like Bierce, Poe, Le Fanu, and M.R. James (to name a few), understand the power of simple stark imagery so well. Their short tales can stand with the best, and remain so strongly in the reader's mind just because of one certain passage, or description, or image which they flawlessly bring to life. Case in point is Bierce's The Eyes Of The Panther, which details a woman spending a lonely night with her baby in a wood-secluded cabin, and her subsequent descent into madness when she witnesses the searing green eyes of a panther staring at her through the window. Just the thought of this unnaturally-placed animal standing with its haunches against the outside wall, and leering in at the woman wherever she hides, penetrating her mind through the darkness, was an image quite frightening to behold.

[Nomnivor · Rating 1 out of 5]

???

[Víctor Arturo Mercado Fernández · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una excelente muestra muestra del genio de este maestro del terror y suspenso a la vieja usanza que demuestra que no es necesario recurrir a escenas de destripamiento o descripciones detalladas de cómo salpica la sangre.

Muestra una desbordante imaginación, y aunque en algunas partes no pude evitar comprar su estilo narrativo con Horacio Quiroga, ya que es innegable que ambos tienen el don de abordar las cuestiones más simples desde ángulos insospechados para llevar al lector al borde de su asiento, el estilo cáustico de Bierce no puede ocultarse en los diálogos de sus personajes sin por ello demeritar de manera alguna la trama, demostrando su capacidad para crear alucinaciones tan estremecedoras e inquietantes como verosímiles.

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro corto de relatos de terror muy oscuros pero excelentes, escritos con una narrativa exquisita. Un autor que me era desconocido pero que ahora me resulta admirable, lo recomiendo ampliamente.

[Diane Nospraka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Los ojos de la pantera y otros relatos de terror de Ambrose Bierce son un conjunto de once relatos los cuales reflejan sombrías escenas cuyos personajes vagan en los límites de la vida y la muerte tal como en Un habitante de Carcosa y El camino a la luz de la luna cuyos personajes dan testimonio de hechos trágicos. En Visiones de la noche los sueños son el elemento esencial de la narración. En La muerte de Halpin Frayser el autor nos revela que aún los seres más queridos en el otro plano son engendros ajenos a su vida anterior. En Los ojos de la pantera la hija de un pionero habitante de la selva describe el origen de su maldición. La cronofobia es sujeto de importancia en El reloj de John Bartine. Algunas narraciones contemplan una introducción a la ciencia ficción tales como La cosa maldita y El amo de Moxon en los cuales las desconocidas criaturas se imponen sobre los humanos violentamente. En mi opinión, mis favoritas fueron aquellas situadas en lugares típicamente norteamericanos tales como Una aventura en Brownville, El dedo del pie derecho y El desconocido en las cuales los sujetos encaran individuos no vivos en esta dimensión quienes tienen un propósito para presentarse en el momento actual. Aunque yo no soy seguidora de la literatura de terror, ciertos cuentos me impresionaron, creo que no dejan indiferente a ninguno de sus lectores. Lo recomiendo no solamente a los fanáticos de este tipo de libros sino también a quienes no se hayan adentrado aún en este autor cuya vida, y muerte, fue incierta.

[David Meditationseed · Rating 5 out of 5]

Haunted houses isolated in dark forests, ghosts, destroyed cemeteries, terrified souls, rivers of blood, are some of the ambiences and characters that appear in the tales of Bierce that are in this selection.

Unlike the synopsis in this book, I disagree with the comparison with Poe. The tales of Bierce bring more naked terror, in a really dark and scary environment.

OK, Some his tales have psychological terror, but only a few of them, but when they arise, they develop with mastery.

In other hand Poe is a genius in this form of psychological terror and the somber setting is not as common as in Bierce's tales. They are two of the greatest perpetrators of terror, but each one with their own peculiarities.

[Klowey · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the first stories featuring a plot that was successfully reworked several time more in stories and films. The idea of a woman who turns into a panther is a twist on earlier stories of male werewolves and female shapeshifters (Clemence Housman's "The Were-Wolf," 1896). The Eyes of the Panther inspired the director, Val Lewton, to write the story "The Bagheeta" upon which his 1942 film "Cat People" was based.

[Mikyla Reid · Rating 5 out of 5]

That was short, simple, and truly terrifying. My gosh that's 25 pages worth of terror I'll be thinking about on repeat every time I'm in the dark from now on.

*** Do not read if you are dealing with postpartum anxiety!!

[Anna Wooliver Phillips · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The woman yielded: lacking the gift of humor she could not hold out against his kindly badinage."

Oh please, I'm a woman, someone rescue me from Ambrose Bierce's badinage. Lol

[Andy Hickman · Rating 4 out of 5]

The eyes of the panther – “The man was .. with the expression of a poet and the complexion of a pirate – a man at whom one would look again.” Who else writes like this?!

[Christina · Rating 3 out of 5]

It seemed like it was supposed to be scary but really wasn't. Not my type.

[Ivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

5/10

[Rut · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the style and the use of the language. The ending is truly ingeneous, though, at first I was not sure I got it right.

[Yamila Sosa · Rating 4 out of 5]

El libro contiene varios relatos cortos. Es fácil y rápido de leer.

[David Meditationseed · Rating 2 out of 5]

The folklore of different cultures have histories of supernatural beings that arise from the cursed union between humans and animals. The werewolf tales, for example, are one such case.

In this story of Bierce, unlike the werewolf, the protagonist is a woman. The case is similar, with its differences, the need for the full moon for a transformation.

Part of the plot is really scary, as horrible as a hysterical laugh that comes between the lines of this tale. The rest of the text nowadays has become commonplace, by the massification of this type of history. So there is not much mystery here, just the pleasure of reading such a short story by the hands of Bierce.

[Robert Hepple · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Eyes of the Panther is a 1928 collection of short stories by Ambrose Bierce, with an introduction by Martin Armstrong. It is subtitled Tales of Soldiers and Civilians, which is misleading in that this was also the title of an Ambrose Bierce collection of short stories in 1891 which differed significantly in content. The 24 stories in the 1928 collection arguably includes some of his best known and most often reprinted items. They are all very short, in the 5-15 page length making them focussed and punchy with occasional amounts of macabre and supernatural. An amazing read.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

The theme of this story is well known, as it has been copied many times. The evocative writing is what makes this a classic that is still worth reading. A cabin in the dark woods, a terrifying intruder, the hysterical laughter of madness, all add to the dreaded outcome of this tale. It all starts out so harmlessly with the refusal of a proposal of marriage, which leads to an incredible tale.
Audible edition, narrated by Russ Holcomb. This can also be found in An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge: Collected Stories of the Supernatural.

[Olly · Rating 2 out of 5]

A particularly weak Ambrose Bierce for me. Beautiful imagery as ever, but the pacing and reveal were not of his usual standards.

[Alvaro_atm92 · Rating 3 out of 5]

This guy is obsessed with eyes

[Lisandro Irusta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesantes relatos sobre las miradas que desde la oscuridad de la selva nos velan y persiguen