Rhonda Massengill "Stephen Crane's Poems"

Stephan Crane’s poetry was really weird and hard to understand. According to his biography his work was a reflection of religion in a humorous way. I really don’t agree with his approach to religion. I felt he was mocking god. One example of this type of mocking was called “A God in Wrath”. It puts god on the same pedal stool as mankind which is ridiculous. The poem states that God had cuffed a man and started beating this man. This poem basically states that God is a God of anger. Sin angers God but I am so glad that my heavenly father is a God of mercy. He doesn’t beat his children because they sin but he forgives them if they would turn from their wicked ways. All god wants us to do is ask for forgiveness, put him first, and strive to live right.
Another important factor to Stephan Crane’s poetry was his desire to be a solder. In 1890 he had spent two and a half years at a military prep school in New York. He later decided, after a year in Lafayette College, to leave the college and transfer to Syracuse University. I don’t agree with Stephan Crane’s perception of war based on his poem called, “Do not weep, Maiden, for war is kind”. Stephan Crane’s perception of war is relevant to how war was viewed years ago. Men were obligated to support their country and if they didn’t they were shunned. He tells the family not to mourn for their family’s death but to consider it an honor. War back then was considered a privileged to be a part of. Today we know that war isn’t an honor. War leaves children without dads, moms without their sons, and wife’s without husbands. The repercussion of war outweighs the good in war. War leaves men with permanent disabilities that cause everyone to suffer.