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cover of episode Ambrose Bierce, from ‘The Devil’s Dictionary’ to disappearing in Mexico, with Jim Norrena

Ambrose Bierce, from ‘The Devil’s Dictionary’ to disappearing in Mexico, with Jim Norrena

2025/5/15
logo of podcast Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing
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Jim Norena
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Mignon Fogarty
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Jim Norena: 我认为 Ambrose Bierce 的作品既幽默又带有讽刺意味，他的愤世嫉俗与他的生活经历有关。他以新闻业闻名，曾在 William Randall Hearst 的《旧金山观察家报》工作。他参加过内战，头部受伤，这影响了他的一生。他的战争经历影响了他的短篇小说创作，他创作了大约 250 篇短篇小说。他擅长讽刺，他的许多讽刺作品都准确地批评了当时的政治，这也是我喜欢他的原因。他还曾担任过印刷学徒，这可能启发了他创作《魔鬼词典》。他的一生也充满了个人悲剧，这影响了他的世界观。最后，他在 1913 年前往墨西哥后失踪，至今下落不明，这使他的人生更具传奇色彩。 Mignon Fogarty: 我认为 Ambrose Bierce 是有史以来最有趣的人之一。《魔鬼词典》是一本以幽默方式定义普通词语的书。他被描述为一位令人畏惧的文学评论家。他对人性的看法并不积极。他的成就远不止《魔鬼词典》。他的短篇小说《An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge》可以在 Project Gutenberg 上免费阅读。作为讽刺作家，他与斯威夫特齐名；作为恐怖小说家，他与爱伦·坡和洛夫克拉夫特齐名。他是一位值得一读的文学天才，他的人生经历非常精彩。我很想和他一起喝咖啡，听他指出生活中的荒谬之处。

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This chapter introduces Ambrose Bierce, a famous writer and journalist known for his wit and cynicism. It explores his background, including his experience in the Civil War, his work as a journalist, and his reputation as a feared literary critic.
  • Ambrose Bierce was a writer and journalist known for his wit and cynicism.
  • He fought in the Civil War and had a head injury that affected him throughout his life.
  • He worked for the San Francisco Examiner and was close to William Randolph Hearst.
  • He was known as a feared literary critic.

Shownotes Transcript

  1. Copy editor Jim Norrena joins us this week for a conversation about Ambrose Bierce, his famous "Devil's Dictionary," and his darkly funny take on the world. We look at Bierce’s fascinating (and tragic) life, his legendary wordplay, and his mysterious disappearance in Mexico. Plus, we share our favorite biting definitions and quirky facts about his life. We'd love to have coffee with him, but we'd never forget that he was also a feared literary critic!

 Jim Norrena, MFA, has been writing and editing for more than thirty-five years. He’s the founder and principal editor at TypoSuction.com), an independent editing/writing service. He taught grammar and copyediting intensives and professional proofreading workshops at Media Alliance) and served as events coordinator for Bay Area Editors’ Forum (BAEF)). You can find him on LinkedIn).

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