Rating: Summary: Coming of Age Review: Stephen Crane's "The Red Badge of Courage" tells the story of transformation of one Henry Fleming, the "hero" of the story. In it, Crane relates what it is like to be young and brash, thinking in ideal terms that come crashing down with a harsh dose of reality. The reader goes along for the ride as Henry enlists for the Union Army during the American Civil War. Henry imagines for himself visions of grandeur, winning glory in battle and the respect and admiration of his peers. However, as his first battle approaches, Henry begins to feel differently...He questions some fellow soldiers about the upcoming battle and how they'll perform. As these doubts continue to fester in his mind, Henry more and more grows apprehensive about what is to come. In short order Henry's original dreams of glory are a forgotten memory as he cowers from the battlefield... From here Crane relates how Henry goes from battlefield deserter to genuine hero. But it is the way in which Crane tells it that is worthy of our attention. Having never been in battle himself, people were (and still are) amazed at how vividly Crane was able to "bring the war home" to the reader. His various accounts of combat, and of the state of mind of the participants, have long been acknowledged as masterful. Indeed, one finds it hard to believe Mr. Crane was not there himself. Crane wrote this story when he was just 25 but died within a few years of consumption. We can only wonder what else we could have expected to receieve from his gifted pen; however, at the same time, we should be grateful that he left us "The Red Badge of Courage" before he met his untimely end. For in it Crane captured the real essence of war, and the effect that it has on ordinary people. Crane didn't coin the phrase, but "Badge" reinforces it all the same...war is hell. Five stars.
Rating: Summary: The Red Badge of Boredom Review: A Review by Taylor The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane is about young Henry Flemming, who joins the Union Army during the Civil War. He thought he would join the army, prove his courage and manhood, and return home honorably. But from the start of his first battle, he is confronted with all of his fears and inner conflicts. This book is mainly about the transformation Henry goes through, his courage and cowardice, his pride and self-pity as he fights in this country's bloodiest conflict of all time. In my opinion, this book is horrible and extremely overrated. Crane usually identifies the characters using characteristics such as the youth, the tall soldier, and the bearded officer, which makes it difficult to follow and understand at times. The dialogue was also very difficult to understand. Crane really failed at his attempt to write dialogue in the way people talk, often overdoing accents. One example is in the twelfth chapter where a soldier said, "Thunder, I wish we was sure 'a findin' our reg'ments t'night. It's goin' t' be long huntin'. But I guess we kin do it." Dialogue like this is very common in the book and it makes it difficult to comprehend and take in. I sometimes had to stop and read a paragraph over again to understand what the person was saying. The One thing that I liked about the book is Crane's descriptions and metaphors. A good example of this is when he wrote, "The ground was cluttered with vines and bushes, and the trees grew close and spread out like bouquets...The creepers, catching against his legs, cried out harshly as their sprays were torn from the barks of trees." I generally liked his writing style, though I recall numerous times when his descriptions were rather dull and difficult to understand. I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone really. Unless you really like Civil War books or you are looking for something written in an interesting and different way, don't waste your time and/or money on this book.
Rating: Summary: Boring Review: I have to read this book for school! I hate it! It is soo boring!
Rating: Summary: Great for more than an easy book report Review: While in junior high I failed to jump on The Red Badge of Courage bandwagon when everyone chose it as a book report book because of its length. I am sorry I missed out. The length certainly makes this book easy and accessible to people of all ages, but it is so much more. Not only is it very fast paced, unpredictable, and the best character study I've ever read, but it is timeless. It is about war, specifically the Civil War, but there are no politics or specifics about that war, it is about the emotions of a youth at war and the world through his eyes. There is no difference between what he is thinking as his regiment is charging and what a 20 year old in a modern war would feel. Though Crane had never seen a war before writing this book, he paints an incredibly powerful, honest, and realistic portrayal. It is a fantastic book and one that deserves a very careful, detailed reading, but can also be enjoyed and finished in a couple hours.
Rating: Summary: Not great Review: When I began to read this novel, I had expected Stephen Crane to take me into the Civil War completely. While he does provide ample imagery and creates a good setting, I felt that he was unable to capture my imagination and place me in the midst of the action. Henry, the main character, is delineated as a young boy that undergoes a transformation throughout the novel, but I was unable to identify with him. His thoughts and actions seemed unrealistic, perhaps because I could not view him as a human being, but rather as a fictional character. The novel itself is short, and fell beneath my expectations, however, it did provide for a decent read, and not difficult in the least bit. If you're looking to read a short novel about the Civil War and do not wish to get into the details of the war, but are rather interested in a soldier's perspective, (which is not too extensive either), then The Red Badge of Courage is a good choice.
Rating: Summary: Classic? Not in my book... Review: The Red Badge of Courage, written by Stephen Crane, for me, was not entertaining. I found myself lost in most parts of the book. Crane is a very talented writer, he is very descriptive in his works, but I just do not prefer his writing style. If you prefer hemmingway-straight and to the point, you won't enjoy Crane's writing. Stephen Crane spends a lot more slower pace on his point making. Usualy taking a page to explain one thing. Another interested fact that I saw in Crane's writing was that he doesn't name specificly his characters. Instead he will use a characteristic that they will go by through the whole book. Again, I thought this book was very boring, and found my self drifting away from it. Hope this helps.
Rating: Summary: Pretty Good Book. Review: I found this book about the civil war and easy to read because it was very interesting. The book was based a drummer named Henry Flemming, a young man who at the beginning is scared for his life, finds himself commanding a division of infantry with new friend Wilson. The tite Red Badge of Courage comes from a badge symbolizing bravery and courage. When Henrys best friend Jim Conklin dies, the war represents the enviroment is still moving even though he has died. After his death, Henry is confused and angry at his recent choices of running from the battlefront. He strived to be a hero, and thats what he did. This book's moral to me is to always keep your head up and do your best at everything you do. Some of the things that I didn't enjoy very much were that it didn't really tell the awful details of war, if the author is going to release a book out about war, it usually should tell people that war is not a good thing and teach people it is not something to wish for. It also only covered a time span of a few days, Quite a short period. Thankyou for your time. -Bret
Rating: Summary: Not great Review: Stephen Crane never actually fought in battle in the civil war (I don't think he even visited a battlefield), and this novel reflects his personal inexperience. The book lacks comprehensive descriptions and relies too much on personificatin and ambiguity. The prose itself is mediocre and only detracts from the novel's themes. Personally, I wouldn't suggest reading this book unless it is a class requirement. The novel's few moments of excitment are not displayed well at all. It is disappointing to say that the "Wishbone" version of The Red Badge of Courage was more interesting than the actual book. Truthfully, the only reason why I think that the novel is critically acclaimed is because there was a lack of literature focused on the civil war written during the time period.
Rating: Summary: CONFUSING Review: Red Badge of Courage was a very confusing book. When I was reading it, Stephen Crane used so much personification that it made my head hurt.Red Badge of Courage is about a boy who goes off into trhe Civil War because of the excitement that he sees in his town about the war. But, when he gets there it's nothing that he thought it would be.This book is good but it's not great. Sometimes it will have you on the edge of your seat, and other times you will feel like not even reading it.
Rating: Summary: The Red Badge of Courage Review: I have Read many books in my life and I have been reading my whole life but the one book that is the best I have ever read is The Red Badge of Courage. the book is about A boy named Henry Fleming.The setting is a Cival War Regiment's camp. "Henry Fleming and tom Wilson exit their tent to the protests of Jim Conklin" Jim swears that they are going to move the next day. No one belived Jim and all the men ridiculed him.Eventuly the company moved, right into the middle of a battle. Every soldier wanted a red badge of courage but what most of them didn't know is that they needed to be wounded in battle. A red badge in a simple flesh wound. The reason I like this book is because it tells a historic/fiction tale. Steven Crane is well Known for bieng a realist. Realists tell stoies in a way that is realistic.I have read many Steven Crane books but there are many other books by him I have to read io have read them all
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