In a tragic example of situational irony, the child delights in the sight of a random house that has caught fire, only to realize later that it is his family’s home that is burning down with his family inside. While the child initially “danced with glee in imitation of the wavering flames” and even threw his toy sword into the fire to add to its strength, he begins to notice some familiar aspects of the setting:
Shifting his position, his eyes fell upon some outbuildings which had an oddly familiar appearance, as if he had dreamed of them. He stood considering them with wonder, when suddenly the entire plantation, with its inclosing forest, seemed to turn as if upon a pivot. His little world swung half around; the points of the compass were reversed. He recognized the blazing building as his own home!
The irony of this moment comes across in the way that the boy’s glee turns into curiosity, then into “wonder,” and ultimately into shock and devastation as the narrator exclaims, “He recognized the blazing building as his own home!” With this ironic twist, Bierce highlights the fact that no one is spared the effects of war. While the child’s family is not actively engaged in the war effort, they are still targeted (possibly because they are enslavers, but also possibly because they simply live near the battlefield). This is also a lesson for the child who reveled in the idea of war. Now that he has experienced the reality of war, he finds it devastating.
