There are people who were born, as they say, "with a golden spoon in their mouth", but there are those who have to break through the difficulties and complexities of life and make themselves what they want to see themselves as. Ambrose Bierce, an American writer, belongs to the second class of people.
Biography
Ambrose Bierce was born in 1842 in a small village in Ohio. The Bierse family had ten children, Ambrose was the youngest. They lived poorly, could barely make ends meet, and often moved from place to place.
Because of poverty, all the children started working early, the same fate awaited Ambrose: he worked in a printing house, in advertising, in a cafe as an officer, as a worker. His main difference was his insatiable love for books - he read them every free minute.
In addition to the military school, which Bierce graduated from, he had another harsh school of life - the American Civil War. He was there for four years, suffered an injury, lay in the hospital and then went back to the trenches.
However, this time was very happy for him - he was free. He was free from the restrictions that children in a fanatically religious family were subjected to. There he owed and owed a lot, but had no rights. And in the war everything was simple: the commander thinks and answers for you, and you just do it.
At that time he had not yet thought about literary creation, but his brain eagerly absorbed faces, events, impressions - it was gathering material for future stories. Bierce rose to the rank of major and was demobilized in 1865.
In civilian life, not too pleasant impressions awaited him: he participated in the distribution of confiscated property and saw many greedy, mean and petty people.
It was at this time that he began to put his thoughts on paper. His first work in writing was as a journalist for the News Legter newspaper. And then there were a lot of different newspapers, and Bierce acquired a significant reputation in society: he evaluates the policy of the government and explains to the townsfolk what this or that decision of the government will lead to.
Career in literature
Beginning in 1871, Ambrose began to publish his stories, but they have not yet been successful. When he becomes editor of the San Francisco Exeminer, his fame is inevitable. However, the editor, inconvenient for the authorities, conducts his policy, exposing villains and corrupt officials.
Unfortunately, there was not enough money to publish their books, but friends helped, and in 1891 his collection "Tales of Soldiers and Civilians" was published, followed by others.
The genre orientation of Bierce's works is very extensive, he also wrote science fiction. These creations of his are compared with the stories of Edgar Poe, finding in them the same charm and conciseness. He was also a recognized innovator in the novel genre.
A special place in Bierce's work was occupied by stories about the afterlife. He wrote about telepathy, resurrection after death, but the most important thing that distinguishes the writer's stories is the most unexpected ending. This became Bierce's trademark.
Personal life
Nothing is known about Ambrose Bierce's family, and he himself went missing when he went to Mexico as a war correspondent. His last days are surrounded by legend - no one still knows how he died. He could be shot, he could just disappear somewhere - after all, by the time of his departure in 1913, he was already 71 years old.
Despite the fact that Bierce was not very famous during his lifetime, his works had a great influence on writers around the world that were doing after him.
