Shirly Ong
English 48B
22 February, 2008
Journal #21 Stephen Crane
Quote:
“’I am going to drown? Can it be possible? Can it be possible? Can it be possible?’ Perhaps an individual must consider his own death to be the final phenomenon of nature.”
Summary:
This quote is the thought of the correspondent when the story is going to end.
Response:
Similar to the previous quote, “’If I am going to be drowned…and contemplate sand and trees?’”, this quote illustrates the thoughts and feelings of the Correspondent. When he was approaching the shore, he was trapped in a small current. In this quote, he repeated “can it be possible?” three times. It shows that he could not believe that he was once again in a dangerous situation just before he reaches the shore. I think he is “trapped in his fear” as he has lost his faith. As he cannot get rid of the fear, I believe he is so terrified when he found himself in a small current even if he was approaching the shore. Then, the narrator, that is, Stephen Crane comments that perhaps everyone “must consider his own death to be the final phenomenon of nature”. I think this quote can demonstrates Stephen Crane as a naturalist. Here, he believes that one’s fate is determined by the nature and death is our common final destiny. Thus, the nature is always indifferent to human’s fate. He believes the power of nature is so strong that we cannot make changes to our fate. Whether one’s fate is controlled by the nature has always been controversial. Some people believe that our fate is determined by Gods while some believe it is determined by the nature. Yet, some people believe they themselves are the ones who can alter their destiny. To me, a God determines our fate and we can hardly change it. However, I believe I can work for the “process” of my life. For example, I can definitely work hard in a class and get the grade I want, which is a process of my student life. I still believe God determines my destiny because I always come across expected incidents. I think these unexpected events are the key elements of altering my fate, and are controlled by God.
10/20 I'll give you partial credit here, but I have two concerns: 1) what about the alternative interpretations we discussed in class -- you didn't mention them? 2) what is your own position on this philosophic debate? These questions are important, in part, because it isn't always clear if Crane fits the "usual" definition of Naturalism. Just because that label is applied to him -- by some -- doesn't mean that there aren't alternative ways of viewing his work. So I'd like to have you repost this blog entry also.
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