Stephen Crane and Realism

Stephen Crane and Realism

Stephen Crane was first and foremost a follower of the Realist style of writing. In his novel “The Red Badge of Courage” and short story, “The Open Boat”, Crane is rejecting the romantic’s view of life, nature and war and shows a very different and brutal world.

Shelby Foote noted in an introduction to “The Red Badge of Courage” that the writing was so vivid and realistic that it was almost as if the reader could see the pictures of each scene in his mind. (1) Linda Davis cites his first novel, “Maggie, A Girl of the Streets” as an excellent example of the realistic style of writing. In fact he was harshly criticized because his writing was so dark and vicious in its descriptions. Frank Bergon also pointed out Crane’s “vivid” and “intense” language. He said that Cranes’s use of common dialect of his characters made the characters come alive but because it was so different form what previous writers had done, Crane was again criticized. These critics all agree that his writing was very different from what came before him. He wanted to show things as they are and not some dressed up version of events that was not based on reality. He was also praised fro his very real depictions of war. Although he never personally fought in a war, Civil War veterans were very vocal with their praise about the realistic way d\he descried the battlefield. Cranes had a great influence on later writers who also left behind the romantic view of life and wanted to write in the realistic manner the Crane favored. Hemingway in particular was a major follower of Crane’s style.

1.      Stephen Crane, The Red Badge of Courage, Modern Library published 2000, Introduction by Shelby Foote

2.      Davis, Linda H. 1998. Badge of Courage: The Life of Stephen Crane. New York: Mifflin.

3.      Bergon, Frank. 1975. Stephen Crane's Artistry. New York: Columbia University Press.