The Chaser

The short story "The Chaser," by John Collier, has many ambiguties within it. The main character Alan is looking for a love potion to make the person he's interested in show love towards him. The other character- the old man -first talks about a potion that speeds up the process of death before even mentioning he has a love potion. Menacingly, the old man describes the antidote that speeds up one’s process of death. (adverbs out of order). The old man says that it costs 5,000 dollars for just a teaspoon. The old man describes the potion as a "life cleaner" but Alan doesn’t catch on that it ends someone’s life. The old man talks about one thing, but Alan takes it to mean something else. This is the source of ambiguity in the story.