The Red Badge of Courage (Characters)

Characters

Cheery Soldier

The Cheery Soldier, another soldier-companion known in terms of his physical traits, is Henry's unidentified, strangely lighthearted guide back to his regiment; this mysterious person has been seen by critics as an allegorical figure akin to the ancient gods and goddesses, who lent their help to the heroes of myth. It is during the climax of the book that this character appears. After Henry receives his red badge of courage, he feels lost in the maze of the forest, and is suddenly taken up by the cheery soldier. Somehow, he is able to thread "the tangled forest with a strange fortune." The stranger manages to avoid guards and patrols and, at the same time, carry on an almost incoherent monologue ("There was shootin' here an' shootin' there ). When they reach the campfire where Henry's regiment is resting for the night, the owner of the cheery voice bids him farewell and disappears into the night.

Jim Conklin

Basically, the characters in The Red Badge of Courage outside of Henry Fleming are foils (contrasts) to his character. Jim Conklin, the tall soldier, as he is described by Crane, is more realistic about war than Henry. He tells Henry: "You jest wait 'til tomorrow and you'll see one of the biggest battles ever was." Without illusions about war, Jim is not as impatient as Henry is to enter into the fray. When asked by Henry if any of the soldiers will run from battle, Jim answers that some will run, but most will stay and fight after they start shooting. If most of the company runs, says Jim, he will run too, but if most stay and fight, he will follow. Jim further points out that all the new recruits are untried in battle. Jim also enjoys being the center of attention when he spreads the rumor of troop movement and encounter with the enemy. He is mortally wounded in battle and tells Henry that the great fear he has is that he will fall down in the road and be run over by a wagon. He then races off into a field, repelling Henry's and the tattered soldier's attempts to help him. Jim dies a true hero.

Henry Fleming

Henry, the protagonist of the novel, is a naive, young farm boy from New York state whose dreams of glorious battle lead him to sign up in the Union Army against his mother's wishes. Though he gets his notion of war from books about Greek warriors, his initial confrontation with true war perplexes him. Upon entering battle and witnessing the confusion and panic of his regiment, he flees into the woods and feels like a coward. After he receives his "red badge of courage," a head wound, this shame begins to disappear, however. He realizes that there is no dishonor fleeing certain death. He becomes confident and is happy to be called a "wild cat" by the superior officer. Some critics view Henry's journey as his initiation into manhood. Others feel that he is turned away from the possibility of self-knowledge into self-serving egotism.

In terms of the first critical view, that Crane depicts a boy becoming a man, Henry's battle with the landscape mirrors his internal struggle with his vanity and immaturity. He grows in self-awareness by learning the true meaning of honor and courage, as the novel ends with his renewed faith in life. He achieves an epiphany, as demonstrated in his instinctive desire to grab the Union flag and run with it resolutely to join his men in battle. The conclusion, thus, shows Henry as a man, aware of his maturity, his soul changed. Crane paints nature in this last scene as benevolent, with images of clover, flowers, and the clouds parting to reveal the warmth and light of the sun. As far as the second perspective is concerned, Henry is selfishly involved in his own honor and self-preservation. He does not help his fellow soldiers but is more caught up in how he looks. An example of this theory is when the young boy deserts the tattered soldier as the dying soldier answers the young boy's questions on honor and cowardice.

What distinguishes The Red Badge of Courage from other war stories is the compelling chronicle of the inner emotions common to any new member of the infantry. Thus, Henry deals with doubt, fear, chaos, and confusion even during tense, death-filled moments.

Ma Fleming

The mother of Henry, simply known as Ma Fleming, offers homespun advice to her boy as he goes to war. She tells him that he will be one among many and to be quiet and do what he is told. She also adds, perhaps prophetically: "If so be a time comes when yeh have to be kilt or do a mean thing, why, Henry don't think of anything 'cept what's right " These cautionary statements, some critics believe, underscore Henry's romantic egocentric belief in his own indestructibility. Ma Fleming is a hard-working, uneducated farm woman, who reluctantly lets her son go to war since she knows the reality of war. Fleming identifies nature as a female figure like his mother, who disapproves of the fighting and wants him to escape.

Lt. Hasbrouck

Most of the officers in this novel are viewed as arrogant and insensitive, but this lieutenant is depicted as an ideal military man encouraging his soldiers to behave correctly in battle and praising them for their bravery. He lauds Henry's and Wilson's particular bravery and valor when they fight and seize the flag.

Loud Soldier

See Wilson

Officers

Most of the officers, including the general and colonel, in this novel are viewed as arrogant and insensitive. They refer to the recruits as "muledrivers." Lieutenant Hasbrouk differs in that he enourages his soldiers to behave correctly in battle and praises them for their bravery. He lauds Henry's and Wilson's particular bravery and valor when they fight and seize the flag.

Tall Soldier

See Jim Conklin

Veterans

The group of experienced soldiers in the book provides a contrast to the young recruits. They refer to the newcomers as "fresh fish." These veterans tell tall tales and are tattered and torn in appearance. The fact that they are not particularly distinguishable as individuals — as are most of the recruits, too — indicates the utter cruelty of an impersonal war that takes lives without concern or compassion.

Wilson

Known as the Loud Soldier, Wilson is a boastful new recruit anxious to fight and unable to admit the possibility of his cowardice in the initial confrontation with the enemy. After battle, however, he becomes strangely quiet and is no longer his usual bombastic self. He reveals his fears through his action of giving Henry a packet of letters for Wilson's family in case he does not return home. The battle clearly has a profound effect on him; he assists his fellow soldiers and takes a prominent position in later battles.

Media Adaptations

• The Red Badge of Courage was adapted as a film by John Huston, starring Audie Murphy, Bill Mauldin, and Andy Devine, Universal, 1951; available from MCA/Universal Home Video.
• The Red Badge of Courage also appears on an educational video, with a number of different interpretations of Crane's masterpiece; produced by Thomas S. Klise Company.
• There is an abridged recording of the book, narrated by actor Richard Crenna, and published by Listen for Pleasure, Downsview, Ontario, 1985. Two audio cassettes, 120 minutes, and Dolby processed.
• The sound recording of the complete, unabridged version of The Red Badge of Courage, narrated by Frank Muller, is available from Recorded Books, Charlotte Hall, MD, 1981. Three audio cassettes, 270 minutes.
• A sound recording with a lecture by Warren French on The Red Badge of Courage, published by Everett/Edwards, Deland, FL, 1972. One audio cassette, 38 minutes.