The Open Boat and Other Tales

The Open Boat and Other Tales is a collection of short stories by Stephen Crane.

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The Open Boat is considered a naturalistic short story. It presents the experience of four men on the sea, during a storm; they try to save themselves in a dinghy, after their steamer swamped. After 30 hours of agony, three of them manage to reach the shore alive. Stylistically rich, the story emphasizes in a reflexive, philosophical way the theme of man confronting death. Except for awareness of his condition and an attitude of protest, man has nothing left to do when fighting with an impersonal nature or with fate. Hope and human solidarity are the only resources available in this fight.

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