English 11 Literature #15 Mr. Rinka Stephen Crane Frederick Douglass.

English 11 Literature #15

Mr. Rinka

Stephen CraneFrederick Douglass

Stephen Cranehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Crane

Stephen Crane (1871 –1900) was an American novelist, short story writer, poet and journalist. He wrote notable works in the Realist tradition as well as early examples of American Naturalism and Impressionism. Crane began writing at the age of

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Crane

four and had published several articles by the age of 16. Having little interest in university studies, he left school in 1891 and began work as a reporter and writer. Crane's first novel was the 1893 Bowery tale Maggie: A Girl of the Streets, which critics generally consider the first work of American literary Naturalism.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Crane

He won international acclaim for his 1895 Civil War novel The Red Badge of Courage, which he wrote without any battle experience. In 1896, Crane endured a highly publicized scandal after acting as witness for a suspected prostitute. Late that year he accepted an offer to cover the Spanish-American War

as a war correspondent. As he waited in Jacksonville, Florida for passage to Cuba, he met Cora Taylor, the madam of a brothel, with whom he would have a lasting relationship. While en route to Cuba, Crane's ship sank off the coast of Florida, leaving him adrift for several days in a dinghy. His ordeal was

later described in "The Open Boat". During the final years of his life, he covered conflicts in Greece and lived in England with Cora, where he befriended writers such as Joseph Conrad and H. G. Wells. Plagued by financial difficulties and ill health, Crane died of tuberculosis in a Black Forest sanatorium at the age of 28.

The Red Badge of Courage

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Red_Badge_of_Courage




The Red Badge of Courage is a war novel by American author Stephen Crane (1871–1900). 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. The novel is known for its distinctive style, which includes realistic battle sequences as well as the repeated use of color imagery, and ironic

tone. Separating itself from a traditional war narrative, Crane's story reflects the inner experience of its protagonist—a soldier fleeing from combat—rather than the external world around him. The story Is notable for its use of what Crane called a "psychological portrayal of Fear."

Several of the themes that the story explores are maturation, heroism, cowardice, and the indifference of nature.


The Red Badge of Couragehttp://www.gutenberg.org/files/73/73-h/73-h.htm#chap02


http://www.gutenberg.org/files/73/73-h/73-h.htm#chap02



Crane’s book has a distinctive style which is often described as naturalistic, realistic, impressionistic or a mixture of the three. Told in a third-person limited point of view, the novel reflects the inner-experience of Henry Fleming, a young soldier who flees from combat, rather than


upon the external world around him. The Red Badge of Courage is notable in its vivid descriptions and well-cadenced prose, both of which help create suspense within the story. Critics in particular have pointed to the repeated use of color imagery throughout the novel, both literal and figurative, as proof of the novel's use of Impressionism. Blue

and gray uniforms are mentioned, as are yellow and orange sunlight, and green forests, while men's faces grow red with rage or courage, and gray with death. Crane also uses animalistic imagery to comment upon people, nature, and war itself. The novel begins by portraying the army as a living entity that is "stretched out on the hills, resting."



The main theme of the novel deals with Henry Fleming's attempt to prove himself a worthy soldier by earning his "red badge of courage". The first twelve chapters, until he receives his accidental wound, expose his cowardice. The following

chapters detail his growth and apparently resulting heroism. The indifference of the natural world is a reoccurring theme in Crane's work. At the beginning of the novel, as the regiments advance toward battle, the sky is described as being an innocuous "fairy blue". In chapter seven, Henry notes the inexplicable



tranquility of nature, "a woman with a deep aversion to tragedy", even as the battle rages on.

Frederick Douglasshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Douglass

Frederick Douglass (born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, 1818– 1895) was an American social reformer, orator, writer and statesman. After escaping from slavery, he became a leader of the abolitionist movement, gaining note

for his dazzling oratory and incisive antislavery writing. He stood as a living rebuttal to slaveholders' arguments that slaves did not have the intellectual capacity to function as independent American citizens. Many Northerners also found it hard to believe that such a great orator had been a slave.

Frederick Douglass wrote three Autobiographies. He eloquently described his experiences in slavery in his 1845 autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, which became influential in its support for abolition. He wrote two more autobiographies, with his last, Life and Times of

Frederick Douglass, published in 1881 and covering events through and after the Civil War. After the Civil War, Douglass remained active in the United States' struggle to reach its potential as a "land of the free". Douglass actively supported women's suffrage. Without his approval he became the first African

American nominated for Vice

President of the United States as the

running mate of Victoria Woodhull

on the impracticable and small

Equal Rights Party ticket. Douglass

held multiple public offices.

Douglass was a firm believer in the equality of all people, whether

black, female, Native American, or recent immigrant. He is famously quoted as saying, "I would unite with anybody to do right and with nobody to do wrong.”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Douglass

Douglass’s Autobiography

NARRATIVE OF THE LIFE OF FREDERICK DOUGLASS AN

AMERICAN SLAVE WRITTEN BY HIMSELF

Discussion of Frederick Douglass’s

AutobiographyDescribe the change that came over Douglass’s mistress.

She went from a kind woman who wanted to teach Douglass to a woman who regretted teaching him and allowing him even to read.

My mistress, who had kindly commenced to instruct me, had, in compliance with the advice and direction of her husband, not only ceased to instruct, but had set her face against my being instructed by any one else.

How did Douglass eventually learn to read and write?

He traded bread for instructions from poor white boys.This bread I used to bestow upon the hungry little urchins, who, in return, would give me that more valuable bread of knowledge.

Why do you think these boys helped Douglass?

Since they were poor, they had no slaves and were less inclined to have strong feelings of superiority. Also, they were young and innocent and not conditioned to prejudice.

What had his readings in “The Columbian Orator” taught him?

By reason and argument a slave had earned his freedom from his master. This must have left a very strong impression on the young Douglass.Also, Douglass read Sheridan’s

speeches on emancipation.

What I got from Sheridan was a bold denunciation of slavery, and a powerful vindication of human rights. The reading of these documents enabled me to utter my thoughts, and to meet the arguments brought forward to sustain slavery;

What was one of the cruel ironies for Douglass once he learned how to read?

Reading had taught Douglass the truth of being a slave. He grew to hate his masters, and he was tormented by his enslavement. He

even envied the ignorant slave who did not understand his conditions. Were it not for the hope of freedom, Douglass would have killed himself or done something for which he would have been killed.

From whom did Douglass get the idea of running away to freedom in the north?

Douglass was helping some Irish seamen on the docks who talked to him about it, but he feared they would just capture him and return him for the reward.

How did Douglass learn to write?

He would pick up “bits and pieces” at the docks and tell other boys he could write. They would challenge him and then correct his mistakes. My copy-book was the board fence, brick wall, and pavement; my pen and ink was a lump of chalk.

Frederick Douglass

http://quietube2.com/v.php/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnhUvxEhLcI&feature=related

Discussion

In a Socratic Seminar explore this topic:What are all the advantages a person gains from an education?

Additional Assignment #1

Watch Abraham Lincoln’s Biography and read his Second Inaugural Address.http://quietube2.com/v.php/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpec3pW76ag&feature=related Abraham Lincoln 2nd Inaugural Address


http://quietube2.com/v.php/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Thz1zDAytzU

http://quietube2.com/v.php/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyZ128zVEr4


Journal #15:Imagine you lived in the United States in 1850 and write a short speech you could make explaining why you feel slavery should be abolished.

English 11 Literature #15

Mr. Rinka

Stephen CraneFrederick Douglass

English 11 Literature #15 Mr. Rinka Stephen Crane Frederick Douglass.

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