"Miss Bracegirdle’s Night of Fear" by Stacy Aumonier is a short story that combines humor, irony, and suspense to explore how fear and misunderstanding can lead to absurd situations.
Summary:
Miss
Bracegirdle is a
respectable, middle-aged English woman traveling alone in France. One
night, while staying at a hotel, she goes to the wrong room by accident after
using the bathroom. She discovers a dead man in the bed — apparently
from natural causes — and panics.
Terrified of being
suspected of murder or caught in a scandal, Miss Bracegirdle desperately tries
to return to her own room without being seen. Her panic leads to a night full
of fear, sneaking around the hotel in her nightgown, and imagining the worst possible
outcomes.
In the end, no one notices
anything unusual. Her night of terror, full of imagined crimes and
social disgrace, turns out to be completely unnecessary. The story ends with a
touch of irony: the real threat was only in her imagination, and society
never even noticed.
Themes:
- Fear and imagination
- Social respectability and reputation
- Irony and misunderstanding
- The absurdity of human behavior
Conclusion:
"Miss
Bracegirdle’s Night of Fear" is a witty and ironic tale that shows how a simple mistake, combined
with fear and social anxiety, can spiral into chaos — even when nothing is
actually wrong. It's a clever commentary on human nature and how we often let
our fears control us more than reality does.
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