As Henry Fleming sits on the riverbank with the other men, fear begins to overpower him. Henry is a new recruit in the Union's 304th Regiment army, and although he joined for the glory of fighting, he now doubts his ability to actually participate in battle. Rumors have been spreading throughout the camp that the men will soon march, and this anticipation has merely added to the dread. Henry recalls telling his mother, "Ma, I'm going to enlist," and she had replied, "Henry, don't you be a fool" (Crane Ch.1). Soon the men are marching, and after several days they finally near the battlefield and can hear the sounds of battle.

Henry has been considering desertion during these past days, however when the enemy finally attacks, he finds himself surrounded by his regiment and could not flee even if he had chosen to do so. Thus, with no alternative, he fires his weapon, almost like a mechanical machine. It is a Union victory, yet after congratulating each other, and taking a brief rest, Henry is awakened to the sounds of battle. The Confederat

As the procession of weary soldiers "became a bedraggled train, despondent and muttering, marching with churning effort in a trough of liquid brown mud under a low, wretched sky...the youth smiled" (Crane Ch.24). Henry now "saw that the world was a world for him, though many discovered it to be made of oaths and walking sticks" (Crane Ch.24). He had "rid himself of the red sickness of battle...The sultry nightmare was in the past" (Crane Ch.24). He could now look forward to peace within himself, and "over the river a golden ray of sun came through the hosts of leaden rain clouds" (Crane Ch.24).

Soon he passes a general on horseback and hears him say that the Union regiment had managed to hold back the Confederates attack. Although he feels ashamed for being such a coward, he still keeps telling himself that he did the right thing in running away, that his own life was worth more than dying in some meaningless battle. Not long afterwards, he stumbles upon a dead soldier, decaying in the elements. Crane writes, "The youth gave a shriek as he confronted the thing. He was for moments turned to stone before it. He remained staring into the liquid-looking eyes. The dead man and the living man exchanged a long look" (Crane Ch. 7). He is so frightened by the sight that he quickly runs further through the forest, convinced all the more that he is doing the right thing.

es are charging again. This time he runs, telling himself that this was the logical choice to make because there was no way his regiment could withstand another attack and win. He also tried to convince himself that the other men, like Jim Conklin, were fools to stay and fight, risking their lives for certain defeat.

Some critics believe that Stephen Crane's book is actually more concerned with the generation that followed the Civil War (Renza). Perhaps written a caution that they not forget what this war was about and how these young men, some mere boys, fought bravely, and were forced to face the enemy and their own fears and demons (Renza). The novel's point of view and fragments is limited to its narrative in an effort to focus the impact of each of his "battle pictures" and force readers to see the truth of his descriptions (Critical)

Henry and the tattered soldier continue through the woods. The sounds of battle can be heard in the distance. And the wounded soldier keeps asking Henry where he is wounded, until Henry can no longer tolerate it and abandons the man to die alone in the forest. "Turning at a distance," Henry "saw the tattered man wandering about helplessly in the field" (Crane

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1748
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)