Red Badge of Courage :: essays research papers

REVIEW 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Discuss the novel as a psychological journey. Discuss how Henry Changes throughout the novel. What causes him to change? Henry Fleming is a young solider fighting for the union army during the civil war. Throughout the war Henry ventures on a long psychological journey to discover himself. Often referred to as â€Å"the youth† Henry comes into battle with the naà ¯ve fantasies of being a war hero with out ever having faced a single battle, making him extremely self centered and vein. His desires to be heroic are far from noble but are based solely on the desire to be accepted and admired by men. He is motivated only by the idea of being immortalized among men and really holds no sense of right and wrong. Many times he justifies his coward ness by saying that the other men are not â€Å"wise enough to save themselves from the flurry of death.† And somehow restores his own self pride. He convinces himself every time that his lies are truth. But mid way through the novel Henry finally faces battle and the turning point of the novel occurs, because Henry fights, he no longer cares about himself but is part of the bigger picture he is a vital part of the â€Å"fighting machine†. As Henry forgets about the immature fantasies of a reputation he begins to earn one and quite a good one. Many of the officers are even offering their compliments and praise. Henry’s character comes full circle when he let go of his earlier mistakes and abandons the hope of a great heroism and trades it all for the more gratifying understanding of what it is to be a man. 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Discuss the religious imagery in the novel. How does Crane’s background influence his opinon What point is he making? The is tons of religious imagery. The most obvious is Jim being portrayed as Jesus Christ his initials are even JC and in his death he even depicts him with the â€Å"piercing† on his side and his blood covered hands. Crane was probably most influenced by his father who was a Methodist minister. 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  How is the novel an example of Realism? Give specific ezamples that show the novel as a realistic novel. What descriptions of battle make the novel realistic? By definition realism is, â€Å"understanding of nature of real life: a practical understanding and acceptance of the actual nature of the world, rather than an idealized or romantic view of it†.