Red Badge Of Courage Research Paper

In the story "The Red Badge of Courage" by Stephen Crane, the main character Henry is faced with a decision he never thought he would have to make. Entering the 304th regiment, he knew he would be in for battles and violence. Although Henry was skeptical about war, and unaware of how to react to what would happen, he knew it was an experience he would soon have to face. Henry came to the realization of the scene around him, his side was losing. This was not what Henry had witnessed in the first battle. He was confused, scared, lost, and in flight mode. Henry's natural instincts for survival kicked in, and he ran. The reason, in which Henry must of ran, had to be because he was not aware of what he was facing. He had never witnessed his side failing before, and this made Henry fear for his life.

      In The Red Badge of Courage, Stephen Crane explores the theme of courage and heroism in depth. He develops these themes through the main character, Henry Fleming. Henry is a naïve young man faced with the harsh realities of war, in this book, some argue that Henry is transformed into a heroic "quiet manhood" while others see Henry as the same young man who ran from battle in the beginning of the book. I think Henry doesn't change, his heroic status acquired at the end of the book isn't truly him, instead he merely is motivated by fear of dying and being rejected by his fellow soldiers.

“He suddenly lost concern for himself, and forgot to look at a menacing fate. He became not a man but a member.” (Crane, Chapter 5) “The Red Badge of Courage” written by Stephen Crane is a story taking place during the Civil War. It is about a young new recruit of the Union Army named Henry Fleming. He flees from battle, but as he feels really shameful he returns to his regiment. There are many themes in the story, as Henry longs for courage and man hood, but along the way he learns self preservation.

"He became not a man but a member. He felt that something of which he was a part -a regiment, an army, a cause, or a country -was in a crisis. He was welded into a common personality which was dominated by a single desire." (Crane ) The Red Badge of Courage is written by Stephen Crane. It takes place during the Civil War. Some readers think Henry is a Coward while other think he is a hero. Henry shows heroic traits when he ends up fighting, grabs the flag, and stays with the army.

As Henry is trying to find ways to justify running from the battle, he happens to overhear a few men talking about the very same battle. His side had won, and Henry is faced with the harsh truth, Henry ran out of fear. Not because he though that the soldiers fighting alongside him would lose, but because he was afraid only for his own life. As he is thinking about all of this, Henry finally comes across other soldiers. As he inspects them more closely however, he notices that they are all badly wounded. Still trying to escape the battle, he joins

Henry Fleming (the youth) is the main character in the book Red Badge of Courage. Henry enlists in the Union Army during the US Civil War at a very young age and fights alongside other Union soldiers in his first battle. However when faced with an immediate second battle Henry decides to run and desert his unit. Henry is so tramatized by the dead and wounded soldiers that he sees during his first conflict that he cannot accept walking straight into his own death. So he runs away as fast as he can to save himself.

The Civil War officially started in 1861, yet problems between the North and the South date back as far as the early 1830s. The North was infuriated over slavery after a woman by the name of Harriet Beecher Stowe published her book Uncle Tom's Cabin. Stowe's book analyzed the life of a slave in an astonishing and realistic way. It caused many people to join the Union. Then the war began in July of 1861 when a Confederate army met with a Federal army at Manassen, Virginia. Many battles were fought until finally the north was victorious. Slavery was abolished, and the federal government's power was set as supreme power over all the land.

When the men regroup for the second attack, many of the Union soldiers around henry begin to run away. Henry gives into the pressure and joins in the retreat, he wasn’t prepared for the horror that war brings. As he’s running, he seems to observe everyone else around him. He sees his captain lying stretched on the ground, dead, the babbling man was grazed by a shot to the head, and another man grunted as he was struck in the stomach, along with many others that just started dropping to the ground. As Henry ran, he feared for his life that he was going to be struck in the back, but he continued running. The thought of self-preservation seemed more important to him than fighting with selflessness and bravery along with the other

In today’s issue, we will be covering all the major events that have transpired in The Red Badge of Courage as a sort of “catch-up” for new readers. Firstly, it all began when young Henry Fleming enlisted in the Union Army, wanting to fight for his country. He expects war to be thrilling and exciting, and for him to come back a decorated hero, praised by the town. However, it starts out far from his dreams. Instead, his regiment is only told to stay where they are, drilling and training over and over again and abstaining from any combat. Finally, his wish is granted as his regiment moves out, but not in the way they expected. The “moving” simply consisted of them stopping in one area, settling down, then being ordered to move again, repeating

Henry, the main character from, "The Red Badge of Courage" by Stephan Crane, showed many different emotions and reactions to battle. The essay will show how nature and human life are similar. In the same sense that the emotions that Henry portrayed fear and bravery in numerous occasions throughout the story; in the end his youthfulness got the best of him. In the first battle Henry stayed with his unit. However, in the second battle, he ran away from the battle. From these two extremely different reactions, it can be determined that Henry was going through internal battles as well as external battles.

The Red Badge of Courage is a story of humility and courage. The setting is during the Civil War with the 304th Regiment. Henry Fleming, the story’s main protagonist has many questions that need to be answered. He questions if he would run away when in the midst of a battle. Henry joined the regiment in hopes of obtaining personal glory. After false rumor after false rumor of moving towards the battle, the 304th regiment loses hope of experiencing battle. The main plot and conflict is introduced when Henry encounters his first battle: the struggle to run for his life or stay and fight until death. During his first battle, fear grips him, but he cannot flee because he is boxed in both left and right. After they push the confederate soldiers back, they are attacked soon yet again and this time Henry runs for it. When he finally stops, he tries to justify his actions by stating that the soldiers are stupid for fighting a lost battle. He comes across a group of soldiers with wounds and envies their “red badge of courage”. After hearing how generals and higher ranked officials talk about his regiment, he becomes enraged, furious. This is the turning point of the story, because he makes something of himself from then on. Henry Fleming chooses to redeem himself in battle by becoming one of the best in the 304th regiment. The climax of the novel

Henry sacrificed his romantic ideas of war to become a good soldier. When Henry enlists, he imagines glorious battles and being a war hero. “His busy mind had drawn for him large pictures extravagant in color, lurid with breathless deeds.” (p. 4) However, in his first battle, war isn't the noble act he envisioned. He watches numerous people he knows die horrible deaths and runs away out of fear. “On his face was the horror of those things which he imagined...He ran like a blind man.”(p. 46) The scenes that he witnesses are so horrific, that it leads to him being unable to focus on anything, even running from those sites. After running, Henry realizes that he isn't going to be a war hero. It is this realization that allows Henry to become a good soldier. In his next battle, Henry forgets about himself and fights as a part of a group. “He suddenly lost concern for himself...He was welded into a common personality that was dominated by a single desire.”(p. 38) He becomes such a good soldier that his commander tells him “‘...if I had ten thousand wild cats like you I could tear the stomach outa this war in less’n a week!’”(p. 111). Sacrificing the idea that he is going to be a war hero is what allows Henry to become

“Within him, as he hurled himself forward, was born a love, a despairing fondness for this flag which was near him.” (Crane 108). In the story, The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane, Henry Fleming is a 16 year old soldier who is fighting for the Union during the civil war at the Battle of Chancellorsville in Virginia. Many readers believe that Henry is a hero, but some also believe he is cowardly throughout the book. Henry proves he is that he is heroic throughout the last few chapters of the book because he picks up the fallen flag, encourages people to stay and fight, and he continues to fight even after the enemy is gone.

Henry demonstrates heroism by keeps shooting when the enemy retreats. In chapter 21 when Henry keeps shooting when the enemy retreats and Henry just keeps shooting. Henry runs to the front line with anger and fires a shot. When Henry fires a shot he feels anger in him. Henry keeps firing in the enemy line and the enemy retreats while Henry keeps firing. “This is what Henry

Henry overcomes his concerns of the unknown, but he still lacks courage to talk to the commanders and the leaders of the regiment, which shows his cowardice. Henry has this lack of courage because he felt ashamed. Henry viewed his shame and lack of courage as a burden on other soldiers in the regiment. He felt that the soldiers who had a wound were fulfilled, and he envied him because they had "a red badge of courage" (Crane84) the courage that he lacked. His lack of "a red badge of courage" (Crane84) was short lived when he was shot. Jim Conklin, a man of Henry's first regiment, is