Red Badge Of Courage Essay: Being A Mature Adult

Being A Mature Adult

Throughout the novel, The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane, the main character Henry (young soldier) faces the struggle to prove his courage to himself and the others in his regiment. He was is a young man that left his farm and mother, thinking that he should be doing more with his life. So he enlisted in the Union army. One thing Henry doesn’t expect from the war is the fear that comes with it and the courage it takes. Henry is constantly fighting his inner dragon, but will he defeat it? As the novel goes on, Henry goes through stages in the novel: cowardness, lying, and reflection. By the end of the novel he is no longer the young soldier, but an adult. Henry was thinking about the likelihood of him running away from his fears (being killed in battle) ever since he got there, but no one else shared the same thoughts and emotions as him. He felt like a social outcast. Going into the first battle, “He began to exaggerate the endurance, the skill, and the valor of those who …show more content…
Henry, turning over a new leaf, turns into a war horse. When facing a confederate regiment that might just end them, Henry and Wilson hold the union flag high and lead their regiment into battle. Pushing them back and giving them an unlikely win. He even stole the confederates flag. Wilson and Henry were recognized by the generals for their leadership and courage during the battle and were said they deserved to be a lieutenant. Leading the regiment into a successful battle and fighting with as much courage as he did, I think that shows how far he has come in overcoming his fear. Later on Henry takes time to reflect on what he has done during the war. Such as running away and lying and he recognizes his faults. He knows that running away and lying were wrong of him and he isn’t happy about that. What he is happy about and should be is him overcoming his fears and fighting like hell in