March 24… 4000 Casualties

Question: “No casualty is more or less significant than another; each soldier, Marine, airman and sailor is equally precious and their loss equally tragic,” said Rear Adm. Gregory Smith, the U.S. military’s chief spokesman in Iraq.

Crane and O’Brien are no different. Each depicts death in his own way just as each soldier deals with death (impending or actual) in his own way.  Chapters 9-10 in RBC are an excellent example of Crane’s technique. Explain his technique and what effect this has on the reader. Be sure to explain both the reader’s experience and the experiences of the other characters.

 Answer: The techniques Crane uses in his story are, again, naturalism and realism. He takes a real-life situation and intends to make the reader feel a certain way. The narrator says, ” At times he regarded the wounded soldiers in an envious way. He concieved persons with torn bodies to be peculiarly happy. He wished that he, too, had a wound, a red badge of courage” (51). Although this isn’t anybody dealing with dealth, it is the thought of death and a wound that encourages Henry to wish hurt upon himself. The thought of having a terrible wound and maybe even dying, shows courage. Henry is dealing with hurt and the thought of death (right now at least) with a peculiar outlook. He isn’t upset, he is envious of those who might die. The reader at this point must step back and wonder why he would want to be hurt. Crane had added this aspect of the story to show a contrast with what will happen in the future. This whole event was before Henry’s friend/comrade, Jimmy, dies. At the end of chapter IX, the narrator says, “The youth turned, with sudden, livid rage, toward the battlefield. He shook his fist. He seemed about to deliver a philippic. ‘Hell—” (56). At this point, Henry is clearly upset. He was mad as he turned with “livid rage.” He shakes his fist which is a sign of anger. The tattered man has a totally different outlook on the death of Jimmy. He says, “Well, he was a reg’lar jim-dandy fer nerve, wa’n't he” (56). The tattered man is not upset. He is quietly dealing with the death of his comrade. The tattered man goes on to joke a little about his death as he says, “I wonner where he got ‘is stren’th from? I never seen a man do like that before. It was a funny thing. Well, he was a reg’lar jim-dandy” (56). He seems to have no problem whatsoever with the death of this man. Of course, he has been in the war where he must see people die every single day. But the contrast between how Henry and the tattered man deal with the death, reveals a contrast in the reader. The reader can now relate to any one of these two men. They can be upset and sympathetic or make a joke and be happy because at least it wasn’t them! Again, Henry’s reaction is explained when the narrator says, “The youth, awakened by the tattered soldier’s tone, looked quickly up. he saw that he was swinging uncertainly on his legs and that his face had turned to a shade of blue” (56). Henry was so uneasy that he was swinging back and forth and his face turned blue. Then the narrator says, “The tattered man waved his hand. ‘Narry die,’ he said. ‘All I want is some pea soup an’ a good bed. Some pea soup,’ he repeated dreamily” (57). While Henry changes color, the tattered man only wants some pea soup. He doesn’t even say much about the man who just passed away; all he does is talk about pea soup. Throughout the rest of the chapter, the same sort of contrast is seen. The reader experiences a bit of both worlds. The reader can relate to a feeling no matter what it is. They can be upset about what has happened or pass it off as nothing. The emotions the reader feels are conveyed either through Henry or the tattered man. He uses his age-old technique of realism and naturalism. This is/could be a real event, and these are/could be real people that anyone can relate to.