# Carter Druse — In the Midst of Life character guide

> Carter Druse in In the Midst of Life by Ambrose Bierce.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Druse, Private Carter Druse

**First appearance:** 0003-a-horseman-in-the-sky

## Snapshot

A young Union soldier concealed on a cliff who recognizes the horseman below as his own father and must decide what duty demands.

## Who they are

Druse lies hidden above a valley, watching a stately rider who is both an enemy and his father, recalling the parting command to do what he conceives to be his duty. He trembles, nearly swoons, then steadies himself and fires, first at the horse, then at the man. His private war between filial love and military obligation gives the story its unbearable moral center.

## In the story

### [In the Midst of Life](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/chapters/in-the-midst-of-life)

A soldier faced with the tragic duty of shooting his own father during a military engagement.

### [Soldiers](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/chapters/soldiers)

A soldier facing moral dilemmas and the harsh realities of combat.

### [A Horseman in the Sky](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/chapters/a-horseman-in-the-sky)

A Union soldier from Virginia who shoots his own father, a Confederate officer, to protect his camp.

### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/chapters/ii)

The young Virginian Union soldier on outpost duty, who struggles with the moral weight of killing an enemy and ultimately fires.

### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/chapters/iv)

The soldier who fired the shot, now revealing the target was his father.

### [A Son of the Gods](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/chapters/a-son-of-the-gods)

Not present in this chapter; no character named Druse appears.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/characters/carter_druse
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/characters