The Red Badge of Courage ANNOTATED

As The Red Badge of Courage opens, members of a newly recruited Union regiment are debating a fresh rumor: they are finally going to move out on the next day and engage the enemy. One young soldier, Henry Fleming, reflects on what will become of him when he gets to battle - namely, will he run or will he stand and fight bravely? He enlisted because he wants to be a hero, like the warriors of the Greek epics. His own mother, however, was not interested in such fanciful notions of bravery, and discouraged him from enlisting. When he tells her he's joined the army, she denies him a touching farewell scene and merely says if he finds himself in a situation where he will be killed or may do something wrong, he should go with his feelings. He has not seen his foes yet, save for a conversation with one across a riverbank late one night. The veterans tell the young soldiers of gray, mad, rampaging hordes; but he does not trust the veracity of their tales. He does not care who he fights as long as he does not run away. He and his fellow troops - the tall soldier (Jim Conklin) and the loud soldier (named Wilson) - try to discern whether or not they will think of running. Both believe in themselves enough to say that they will fight as hard as they can, but neither goes as far to say that they definitely will not run. The regiment does not move out on the rumored day, but soon thereafter. They march with other Union army regiments dressed in blue. Their untested nature is shown in the gleaming newness of their unscathed uniforms. The men run down roads carved out in the forest. During this time, Henry's thoughts are mixed and distracted. One minute he feels that he should have never enlisted and misses his home, but the next moment he feels the overwhelming urge to observe a battle. From a safe place on a hill, he watches a skirmish in quiet fascination but does not experience the desire to participate. After he sees his first corpse, he begins to suspect that his regiment is being lead to their slaughter, to be sacrificed to a red war god. He wants to tell his friends his theory, but is afraid they will laugh. Soon, the regiment faces an actual conflict. Wilson, the loud soldier, is so certain he will die that he gives Henry a packet of letters to send to his family. As they line up to fight, rumors fly again about the state of their army. Smoke and noise from guns rise around them. Bullets and shells whistle towards them. A regiment in front, already engaging the enemy, is beaten and flees the battleground. The youth imagines they have been beaten by a monster. He resolves to get a view of this monster, even if he might very well flee himself. The regiment is soon engaged. They work feverishly, firing and reloading. The smoke chokes them and makes their eyes red. Henry is full of rage. Men fall occasionally around him. Soon, the enemy retreats and the men relax. Henry feels satisfied that he has overcome the trials of war. However, the men have not rested for long when the Rebels attack again. They fight fiercely once more. Henry feels differently this time; he believes that the monster of war, a red and green dragon, will come through the gray smoke and swallow him. After a few men around him flee, the youth's own fear gets the better of him. He drops his weapon and runs from the battle. As runs through the forest, he is sure that the dragon is pursuing him and that those who fight are fools. However, as he finally stops near an officer, he learns that his regiment won the battle. He is thunderstruck. He realizes that he has done something very wrong, though he tries to justify his actions by convincing himself his superior powers of observation led him to conclude his regiment was in trouble and that fleeing was necessary. He imagines the insults he will have to bear when returning to camp and attempts to get as far away......