by Stephen Crane (Author)
2020 Reprint of the 1898 Edition. Taking place during the American Civil War, the story is about a young private of the Union Army, Henry Fleming, who flees from the field of battle. Overcome with shame, he longs for a wound, a "red badge of courage," to counteract his cowardice. When his regiment once again faces the enemy, Henry acts as standard-bearer, who carries a flag. The first twelve chapters, until he receives his accidental wound, expose his cowardice. The following chapters detail his growth and apparently resulting heroism. Since the resurgence of Crane's popularity in the 1920s, The Red Badge of Courage has been deemed a major American text and perhaps Crane's most important work. While modern critics have noted Crane's anticipation of the modern spectacle of war, others, such as Crane scholar Stanley Wertheim, believe the work to be unquestionably the most realistic novel about the American Civil War.