Stephen Crane's The Open Boat

     Although the men are pitted against an uncaring sea, they still at this point seem to think their destinies are controlled by some outside force. Their collective thoughts are given: 'If I am going to be drowned--if I am going to be drowned--if I am going to be drowned, why, in the name of the seven mad gods who rule the sea, was I allowed to come thus far and contemplate sand and trees?...If this old ninny-woman, Fate, cannot do better than this, she should be deprived of the management of men's fortunes.'(6) It soon dawns on them, though, that there is no 'fate,' no purpose for their being where they are. It is the realization of this fact that brings the men to the brink of despair: 'When it occurs to a man that nature does not regard him as important, he at first wishes to throw bricks at the temple, and he hates deeply the fact that there are no bricks and no temples.'(6) It seems to them that their

The Open Boat, written by Stephen Crane is discusses the journey of four survivors that were involved in a ship wreck. The oiler, the cook, the captain, and the correspondent are the survivors that make onto a dingey and struggle to survive the roaring waves of the ocean. They happen to come across land after being stranded in the ocean for two days and start to feel a sense of hope that they would be rescued anytime soon. They began feeling down as they realize nobody was going to rescue them and make an attempt to reach shore. The story discusses an external conflict of man vs nature to help state clearly the central idea. The central idea of the story conveys man’s success against nature when ones’ abilities are combined together to increase the chances of survival. The use of 3rd person limited omniscience and character analysis helps to explain how the journey of the men’s survival to get out of the ocean and reach shore is able to succeed while Stephen Crane uses symbolism to demonstrate the unity created amongst the survivors.

There is also a shark that is “playing around” near the boat; curiously, it does not seem to even acknowledge their presence. The realization that they have no purpose brings them to the brink of despair. In the beginning of the story, the author describes the “dawn of seven turned faces.” These are faces of the “seven mad gods” who are apathetic towards the men; moreover, they are part of nature. Towards the end of the story, the correspondent recalls a childhood verse that helps him to understand nature’s indifference. Through their experience together, the four men realize that all they have is each other. The correspondent feels sympathy suddenly for a dying soldier, one who does not even exist, “The correspondent, …dreaming…was moved by a profound and perfectly impersonal comprehension. He was sorry for the soldier of the Legion who lay dying in Algiers.” Being in the current situation, the correspondent finally understands the tragedy of the dying soldier. He realizes what it is like to be alone in a cruel world and more importantly, he realizes he does not have to be alone. When he first heard the story, he was also indifferent towards the soldier, just as nature is indifferent towards the rest of the world. He now understands what it is to be human. Crane opens a view of reality that first seems bitter, but in the end, stands as

The lighthouse on this island seemed like salvation at the time and they would swim thinking they would be saved. Each man are proof of everything that is dark and evil in this world.

Thoughts of drowning run rampant in every man’s mind on that boat. At dawn, the men decided that their only chance is to row toward the distant shore again and swim when the boat finally capsizes.

Even though the oiler suffered on his journey on the open boat all of the characters were victims of life’s unfortunate and twisted series of events. These four men have possibly gone through a shipwreck that left them stranded in the middle of the ocean without any tools for survival aside from a small dinghy. This event in itself is unfortunate enough, but for these men it is barley the beginning. They endure rough seas, fatigue and endless rowing alongside several other complications during their desolation at sea. Nearing the end of the story a large and furious wave completely runs

In the story "The Open Boat," by Stephen Crane, Crane uses many literary techniques to convey the stories overall theme. The story is centered on four men: a cook, a correspondent, Billie, an oiler who is the only character named in the story, and a captain. They are stranded in a lifeboat in stormy seas just off the coast of Florida, just after their ship has sunk. Although they can eventually see the shore, the waves are so big that it is too dangerous to try to take the boat in to land. Instead, the men are forced to take the boat further out to sea, where the waves are not quite as big and dangerous. They spend the night in the lifeboat and take turns rowing and then resting. In the morning, the men are weak and exhausted. The captain

This is to give a vivid imagination to the reader. At the end of the story the narrator makes some vivid similes such as “The third wave moved forward, huge, furious, implacable. It fairly swallowed the dinghy, and almost simultaneously the men tumbled into the sea”(212). Here he is speaking of the waves as if they were human by stating they are “furious” and “fairly swallowed the dinghy”. Once rescued the narrator describes the night as follows: “When it came night, the white waves paced to and fro in the moonlight, and the wind brought the sound of the great sea’s voice to the men on the shore, and they felt that they could then be interpreters.”

When the ship went down some of the men were in a group for survival. Then days started to pass

While taking a cruise to Jamaica for vacations, the ship you are at starts to sink. How do you think people in the ship would react to this scenario? Stephen Crane, an American author, wrote the story “The Open Boat”. The story is about a boat sinking in the middle of the ocean with four men. The characters presented by Crane in the story are a cook, an oiler, a correspondent, and the captain. Although the story is narrated from the view of the correspondent; Crane gives the reader some particular characteristics of the captain. The goal of this paper is to interpret the character of the captain by discussing his actions, feelings, and quotes presented by Crane.

The men came to the conclusion that “fate” must be the reason that they are experiencing this deathly situation. It is the understanding of this fact that brings the men to the edge of their misery. At this point the men feel like their lives are coming to an end, so much so that they even ask the captain if they have a chance at survival, to which the captain replies "If this wind holds and the boat don't swamp, we can't do much else." This quote shows the uselessness that the men feel, but it also makes apparent there is still a possibility of hope.

The men eventually found another shore and decided that the better dock their boat there or else they may not get another opportunity. In this scenario is when Crane uses a lot of irony. While rowing, one of the men continually recited words saying, “If I am going to be drowned – if I am going to be drowned – if I am going to be drowned, why, in the name of the seven mad gods who rule the sea, was I allowed to come thus far and contemplate sand and trees?” (Crane 590). This phrase is extremely ironic because it makes sense. Why would someone’s life plan be to survive just far enough to see where they could continue to survive, and then die? It is almost like a teasing joke. Once the men got closer to the shore, they realized that they would not be able to get their boat completely to land

The narrator begins this story stating, “None of them knew the color of the sky” (338). He refers to the cook, the correspondent, the captain, and the oiler, the main characters. This quote means that all of them are focused on fighting for survival, paying all of their attention to the waves. They fight against the waves, trying to stay alive. However, the author states, “A singular disadvantage of the sea lies in the fact that after successfully surmounting one wave you discover that there is another behind it just as important and just as nervously anxious to do something effective in the way of swamping boats” (339). The waves are a symbol of the uncaring nature; it does not matter how hard the protagonists try to fight against the waves because nature continues its course; the waves continue to flow. However, the characters are determined to stay alive. They continue to face this external conflict that is nature, even when they realize that nature is

In the story, Billie represents an average, hardworking man. He follows the captain’s orders very well, and rows the boat alternating with the correspondent. The oiler is an asset to the dinghy crew because he is physically capable and willing to support the captain and the others. Quick to pick up where the correspondent left off due to exhaustion, the oiler is very polite and willing to take over even though he is exhausted as well. The most ironic part of the story is oiler not making it to the shore alive. To readers, he is the most competent and likely to survive, and he just happens to be the only on to die. His role in the story is significant, because he is nothing less than a sacrifice to the sea so that the others may live. Realistically, nature chooses who it wants, no matter the capabilities of that person.

Crane begins the story with four characters, the captain, the correspondent, the cook, and the Oiler, bailing and rowing in their small craft. He shows the self sacrifice of each individual, and how each person must do his part for the community of men to survive. In the beginning of the story a passage states, "The oiler, steering with one of the two oars in the boat, sometimes raised himself suddenly to keep clear of water that swirled in over the stern. It was a thin little oar and it seemed often ready to snap. The correspondent, pulling at the other oar.... ." 1 This in the most basic sense illustrates each man doing his part for the group. The correspondent and oiler continuously take turns rowing their small craft, never stopping, only resting when spelled by the other. The cook sits in the bottom of their floating hell bailing the seawater. The captain masters the craft and keeps the men together. Without each finger of the proverbial hand there would be no fist. Together, the men fell into this situation, and for their survival, together they must learn to become one.