An Affair of Outposts

Ambrose Bierce’s “An Affair of Outposts” mixes melodrama with graphic combat writing to tell the story of an ill-fated love triangle. Betrayed by his wife, a young man with southern sympathies requests a commission in the Union Army from the Governor of his State. The Governor is reluctant but the man convinces him he “wishes to be dead”. When the governor visits the regiment during a battle, the young captain dies saving his life. The ending is classic Bierce, with an ironic twist that reveals the deeper drama underlying the story.