Ponce Inlet Lighthouse Museum Question and Answer Summary

Q.) Why was American author Stephen Crane aboard the Commodore?

Crane was a renowned adventure seeker with a rebellious nature. He was traveling as a war correspondent aboard the Commodore with a cargo full of arms from the U.S. to supply the Cuban rebels. News networks of late nineteenth century are comparable to today's cable television and tabloid in terms of influence over the media and general public.

1. Q.)What is Crane's major literary/conflict theme in “The Open Boat” and does it mirror other mid, late nineteenth, and twentieth century American authors? 

2. A.)Crane's major literary/conflict theme in “The Open Boat” is survival as a result of the indifferent relationship between nature and man. Crane's writing differs from other late nineteenth, and twentieth century American stories in that he incorporates elements of naturalism with a theme focused on nature through the use of intense imagery and irony to illustrate the struggle of man vs. nature. Many mid, late nineteenth, and twentieth century American pieces had war and man vs. man conflicts as the main theme, as illustrated by Crane's own work, “The Red Badge of Courage.”

Q.)Describe why the American public was so excited by the illegal actions taken by filibustering ships like the Commodore?

A.)The American public was excited by the illegal actions taken by filibustering ships like the Commodore for two reasons. One was majority of the American public sympathized with Cuba in their revolt to gain independence. The other reason was, during the late nineteenth century, prohibition still banned the sale, production, importation, and transportation of alcoholic beverages. Filibustering ships like the Commodore, carrying illegal cargo, were crucial to the anti-prohibition movement to the importation of illegal spirits.

Q.)Why has “The Open Boat” been called the perfect American short story by both literary critics and American Literature professors?

A.)“The Open Boat” has been called the perfect American short story by both literary critics and American Literature professors because it contains all the essentials of what makes a great short story. It contains a wide spectrum of emotion from humor to sadness, it's very sensory intense, every character is revealed within the first chapter (which was a revolutionary way of writing at the time), and there is a moral of the story.

Q.)What is the moral of the story of “The Open Boat”?

A.)The moral of “The Open Boat” is that nature is indifferent to man.

Q.)Why does Crane call the character of the oiler by his name, Billie, and the others: The Captain, the Cook, and the Correspondent?

A.)Crane only gives first-name identity in place of job title identity to Billie to show respect and admiration for him as Billie was the only crew member who did not survive.

Q.)Why? What do you think is Crane's attitude toward God?

A.)Crane's attitude toward God is one of understanding. God is indifferent and man is small. Crane neither criticizes nor praises God or hints at either connotation.