Literary Analysis of “A Mystery of Heroism” The short story “A Mystery of Heroism” seems to convey much about Stephen Crane’s antipathy towards war and the concept of heroism. Crane was against the war movement and many parts of this story reflect his unconventional views. His message is that of the senselessness of war and how men are persuaded by propaganda to believe the glory of battle is worth their lives. The entire story of the soldier’s quest for water from the well is actually an allegory for the futility of war… When Collins’s uperior officers are discussing his fetching the water in the middle of the battle, one of them says, ” We ain’t dyin’ of thirst, are we? That’s foolishness.” This statement contradicts the belief that war is worth all that is sacrificed. Whatever it is we ” re fighting about is not of such dire importance as to take such unnecessary risks, and so casually.
“When Collins faced the meadow and walked away from the regiment he was vaguely conscious that a chasm, the deep valley of all prides, was suddenly between him and his comrades. It was provisional, but the provision was that he return as a victor. He had blindly been led by quaint emotions and laid himself under an obligation to walk squarely up to the face of death.” This passage so closely parallels what the American government does to men during war time. Men are not even cognizant most of the time of the pressure that is being put on them to “walk squarely up to the face of death” by going into battle for their country. Crane also tries to bring to light a more human and realistic view of a soldier as opposed to the idealistic fantasy of a hero. He tries to show that “heroes [are] not much”, that they are human just like the rest of us.
The Term Paper on Robert E Lee War Virginia Man
Robert Edward Lee began his life on January 19, 1807 in Stratford in Westmoreland County, Virginia. He was the son of Revolutionary War hero, "Light Horse" Harry Lee. By the time Lee was two years old, his father was imprisoned for debts. He was later released from jail and ended up leaving his family when Lee was six years old. He sailed off and never returned. His mother, Ann Carter Lee, was a ...
He gives several examples of how Collins is trying to justify that he does not fit the characterization of a hero: “he had often been… irritable, childish, diabolical.” Again Crane seems to be mocking this American paragon of what a hero is supposed to be and that they are really nothing more than human beings who are forced to be heroes because of the situation. The culmination of Crane’s feelings towards war occurs at the end of the story when, after all of Collins’ bravery and peril, “the bucket [of water] lay on the ground empty.” After all the pain and suffering of war, you come out with nothing in the end; anything that was accomplished was not worth what was lost.
