Symbolism In The Red Badge Of Courage

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The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane, a personal growth novel about a young man that becomes a soldier in the Civil War era, has many examples of symbolism and imagery as evident from the very beginning. The Red Badge of Courage, a work of historical fiction, shows the gruesome details of war through the eyes of Henry Fleming, a naive and experienced young man turned soldier. The story is full of symbolism as evident from the title. Stephen Crane’s use of color and animal imagery brings more life to an already gripping story and his graphic description of the personal growth of Henry from young boy to seasoned soldier. It keeps the reader enthralled to the very end. Personal growth, especially that of a boy into manhood, presents itself as one of the most evident themes in the red badge of courage. When Henry first signed on to serve as a soldier, he had a very romanticized, naive perception of what war and serving as a soldier would look like. Henry fantasized it that becoming a soldier would bring him glory and adoration from his peers.
“From his home he had gone to the seminary to bid adieu to many schoolmates. They had thronged about him with wonder and admiration. He had felt the gulf now between them and had swelled with calm pride. He and some of his fellows who had donned blue were …show more content…
Stephen Crane employs this symbolism many times throughout the book. To Henry, a red badge of courage symbolizes a war wound. In chapter 9 Crane writes, “At times he regarded the wounded soldiers in an envious way. He conceived persons with torn bodies to be peculiarly happy. He wished that he, too, had a wound, a red badge of courage” (Page 52). Corpses from the many battles serve as another symbolistic element throughout this book. Henry seemed to think that death in war would bring him glorification but Crane uses nameless corpses to symbolize meaningless death without glory. Crane
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