The+Red+Badge+of+Courage

This book report is about __The Red Badge of Courage__ by Stephen Crane. It is the story of Henry Fleming, a young Union soldier, during the Civil War. Over the course of the book, Henry grows from an eager and anxious boy to a mature and thoughtful young adult. He learns about the horror and death of war.

In the beginning of the book, Henry wanted to become a war hero and thought that being a soldier would make everyone admire him. When his mother told him that he should not enlist because she was afraid that he would killed, he ignored her. When he first joined the army, people praised him for being a soldier and serving the country. When he was sent to battle, however, Henry was not prepared and he was afraid. He saw men being killed and he became terrified that he would be killed too. Because of his fear, Henry deserted his regiment and hid from them. He returned to his unit when the battle was over and decided to fight again. However, when his battalion returned to battle, he realized he was still too afraid to fight and he fled once again. This time Henry became lost and ended up on the other side of the battlefield. He heard moaning and screaming and found soldiers who had been shot and butchered. Henry witnessed the most gruesome horrors of his life. All of these Union soldiers were on the ground and they were maimed or killed. Every one of them needed medical assistance. When Henry reached the regiment's officer, the officer asked him where he had been shot. Henry realized that he was perhaps the only soldier that had not been shot and he felt mortified, turned and walked away. Henry was haunted that he had not contributed as much as the other soldiers. Frantic to find his regiment, Henry grabbed a soldier's arm to asked where his unit could be located. The soldier turned and hit Henry's temple with the back of a rifle. The impact left a bleeding wound on Henry's forehead. Later, when Henry was reunited with his regiment, he said that his wound was caused by a bullet and that he had gotten lost, rather than fled. After seeing the death and pain that his fellow soldiers had suffered, Henry was finally ready to sacrifice himself for the Union. He became a fiercely motivated soldier who was willing to fight.

I studied the Civil War during Seventh Grade, and I picked this historical fiction because of my strong interest in that period of American history. Unfortunately, the book was a struggle for me to read. The book dwelled on Henry's mental state and had little to do with the Civil War. Crane's writing style includes long paragraphs that are repetitive and boring to me. I did like the ending though, because Henry becomes a better person. Unfortunately, the end of the book did not change my opinion of the book in total.

Sam Skinner

Review by Aleda Deuble: This book definitely reminds me of the Civil War unit we did in Seventh Grade, like you had said. It sounds very sad and scary in parts, such as how he runs away from his unit because he is scared, and how he has to witness the pain of the injured soldiers. The book sounds very interesting, but due to the review at the end you gave it, it sounds like it would be a struggle to read for me, like it was to you.

Review By Patrick White The book seems very interesting by the fact that he runs away from his regiment and is all alone by him self. It reminds me of April Morning a bit because Henry is really the only one who doesn't get shot in his regiment. Also how he is trying to get back to his regiment. Sounds like another 7th grade becoming a man book to me.