One example is 'The Gift of the Magi' by O. Henry. It's a very thoughtful story about a young couple who are poor but deeply in love. They each sacrifice their most precious possession to buy a gift for the other, showing the selfless nature of love.
A great thoughtful short story is 'The Lottery' by Shirley Jackson. It makes readers think about the nature of tradition and how blindly following it can lead to terrible consequences. The unexpected and dark ending really makes you reflect on society.
Kafka's 'A Hunger Artist' is also a thoughtful short story. It delves into themes of isolation, self - perception, and the relationship between the artist and society. The hunger artist's obsession with fasting as a form of art and his lack of understanding from the public are thought - provoking.
One example is 'An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge' by Ambrose Bierce. The story seems to end where it begins, with the main character about to be hanged. Another is 'The Circular Ruins' by Jorge Luis Borges, which has a circular structure with the main character creating a man in his dreams, only to later discover he might be a creation himself. Also, 'The Gift of the Magi' by O. Henry can be seen as circular in a sense. The couple sacrifices their most precious possessions for each other, but in the end, they are right back to a place of mutual love and selflessness, as if the cycle of giving and sacrifice is complete.
One example is 'The Three Little Pigs'. It's a short and engaging story about three pigs building houses and outsmarting the big bad wolf. Another is 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears', which is about a girl who enters the bears' house and tries their things. 'Little Red Riding Hood' is also a great short bedtime story.
One good example is 'The Tell - Tale Heart' by Edgar Allan Poe. It's about a man who is driven mad by the old man's 'evil eye' and eventually murders him. Another is 'The Monkey's Paw'. In this story, a family gets a magical paw that grants wishes but with terrifying consequences. And 'The Lottery' by Shirley Jackson is also very scary. It shows a small town's annual lottery which has a dark and cruel ending.
One great example is 'The Complete Sherlock Holmes' by Arthur Conan Doyle. It contains a collection of short stories about the brilliant detective Sherlock Holmes and his adventures. Another is 'The Dubliners' by James Joyce, which offers a collection of short stories that give insights into the lives of people in Dublin. And 'The Canterbury Tales' by Geoffrey Chaucer is also a well - known collection of short stories with a diverse range of characters on a pilgrimage.
Kafka's short stories are often obscure. For instance, 'A Hunger Artist'. It's about a man who starves himself for public entertainment. Kafka's works are full of symbolism and complex themes that can be difficult to fully understand at first, which is why they are often seen as obscure.
One good example is 'The Gift of the Magi' by O. Henry. It's a very short yet powerful story. The young couple sacrifices their most precious possessions for each other, creating a dramatic and heart - warming situation.
One example is 'The Tell - Tale Heart' by Edgar Allan Poe. It's a classic and very engaging in audio form. Another is 'The Gift of the Magi' by O. Henry. It's a heartwarming short story. Also, 'A Sound of Thunder' by Ray Bradbury is quite interesting as an audible short story.
Kafka's 'The Metamorphosis' can also be considered a mystical short story. A man wakes up one day transformed into a giant insect. This sudden and inexplicable transformation challenges our understanding of reality and has a strong sense of the mystical as it delves into the absurd and the unknown.
A man went to a psychiatrist and said, 'Doctor, I keep thinking I'm a deck of cards.' The psychiatrist replied, 'Sit over there. I'll deal with you later.' This story is funny because of the double meaning of 'deal with' and the absurd situation of the man thinking he is a deck of cards.