The Decapitated Chicken

The Decapitated Chicken is a short story by Horacio Quiroga, first published in 1909 in the magazine Caras y Caretas and later included in his collection Tales of Love, Madness and Death.

The story follows a married couple whose first four sons develop severe cognitive disabilities after suffering unexplained illnesses in early childhood. The parents gradually become frustrated and distant from their sons, while blaming each other for the family's misfortune.

Years later, the couple has a healthy daughter who becomes the center of their attention and affection. Meanwhile, the four boys are largely neglected and spend their days sitting together in the courtyard. One morning, they watch a servant slaughter a chicken in the kitchen, becoming fascinated by the sight of its blood.

Later that day, when their younger sister is left alone near them, the brothers imitate what they witnessed and reenact the killing with tragic consequences. Through its shocking conclusion, the story explores neglect, family resentment, cruelty, and the destructive consequences of emotional abandonment.

"All day long, the four idiot sons of the Mazzini-Ferraz couple sat on a bench in the yard. Their tongues hung between their lips, their eyes were stupid, and they turned their heads with their mouths open."

This edition has been translated into English by Alice & Books from the original Spanish text available at es.wikisource.org.