Poetry · Character
Mahatma Holden
A roadside casualty of cannon-practice whose single eye and wandering mind turn military ambition into a grimly comic meditation on the weapons meant to kill.
supporting
Also known as Holden
First appearance: poetry
As a supporting figure in Poetry, Mahatma Holden is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.
The Autocrat of Stars who discovers the Moon after years of patient observation.
He sits on a stone with one eye and a broken future, an ex-West Point cadet whose gun discharged both before and behind, leaving him unfit for the trade of war. His rambling complaint—wanting an international brawl but not a piece of the breech—captures Bierce's fatalistic wit about soldiers and the machinery that maims them. He matters as an early emblem of the collection's recurring theme: the absurd bargain between human intention and violent accident.
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Character Web
5 connectionsA slice of how Mahatma Holden sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.
Relationship types
- Other
Character groups
- Satanic and Thrifty Characters
- Protagonist
- Religious and Historical Figures
- Diverse Allegorical and Named Figures
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Open in readerNarrative arc
Story tension across the book.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
The emotional and psychological peak occurs when the speaker’s obsessive pursuit of the divine rose fragrance…
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Mahatma Holden appears across 2 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.
Chapter companion notes
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See Mahatma Holden in poetry