The Open Boat
In The Open Boat by Stephen Crane, four men drift across the sea, in a boat smaller than an average bathtub. They had lost their ship, the Commodore, sometime after dawn, and now in the clear light of day are beginning to grasp the full gravity of their situation. The four men quickly realize that their main battle will be against the very thing that is holding their definitive place in the world; the swirling, roaring sea below. ??the serenity of nature amid the struggles of the individual?nature in the wind, and nature in the vision of men. She did not seem cruel to him then, nor beneficent, nor treacherous, nor wise. But she was indifferent, flatly indifferent.? (Pg. 1717) These men knew that the sea didn?t care if they lived or drowned, and that the waves would still break monotonously whatever the outcome may be. ?If I am going to be drowned, if I am going to be drowned, if I am going to be drowned, why, in the name of the seven mad gods who rule the sea, was I allowed to come thus far and contemplate sand and trees Was I brought here merely to have my
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