Man or Bear
A standalone crime short story by Beck Lewis — designed for immersive reading and discussion.
If you run a reading group or library session, you can use this story for a 90–120 minute immersive reading event.
What is Man or Bear?
Man or Bear is a standalone crime short story that explores how women assess risk in ordinary, everyday situations — and how quickly politeness can become a trap.
The story draws on the widely shared “man or bear” thought experiment: if a woman were alone in the woods, would she rather encounter an unknown man or a bear? Man or Bear uses that question as a narrative engine to prompt discussion about threat, trust, and interpretation.
Why this story works especially well aloud
Immersive reading is a two-hour group session where the story is read aloud (around 45–60 minutes) and followed by a structured discussion. Because everyone has experienced the text together, the conversation is immediate and often surprisingly intense.
- Suspense lands in real time — listeners feel the pressure of moments as they unfold.
- Interpretation becomes visible — different readers notice different details and assumptions.
- Discussion stays grounded in the text — the story is fresh, not half-remembered.
Immersive reading sessions use a specially edited performance version of the story, adapted for live reading and discussion. This version is not the same as the downloadable text. If you’re interested in hosting a session, please get in touch.
Questions readers often debate
- Where does discomfort become danger — and who gets to decide?
- What role does politeness play in keeping someone safe (or trapping them)?
- How do we read intent when someone is being “nice”?
- What changes when risk is discussed as theory — versus lived experience?