"The Open Boat" by Stephen Crane

I want to take a different approach about Stephen Crane’s “The Open Boat” and focus on a passage that really struck me the most out of the entire story. It’s a passage about transcendence and going beyond what one felt or thought was possible. It is a passage when Crane describes a beautiful change of relationships between the four characters. “It would be difficult to describe the subtle brotherhood of men that was here established on the seas. No one said that it was so. No one mentioned it. But it dwelt in the boat, and each man felt it warm him” (342). I immediately thought back to instances when I, myself, was found in such situations. I met people and treated them nicely but did not feel close to them just yet. It was almost difficult to imagine ever being close with those people. In Crane’s story, the four men on the boat have found ever lasting friendships. Despite the fact that they are lost at sea and the dangers that surround them, they are at the same time beaming with happiness to have achieved brotherhood.
Their voyage is shared and their experiences are together embraced. They were faced with struggles of survival against the forces of nature and even came to a close call with death. That alone, is a very powerful occurrence to share with someone. One’s life is a precious and magnificent “thing”. But when the lives of other people we care about are also at hand, we begin to realize the importance of those people to us, which I believe is what happened with these men in “The Open Boat”. “…the correspondent, for instance, who had been taught to be cynical of men, knew even at the time was the best experience of his life. But no one said that it was so. No one mentioned it.” It did not need to be mentioned. All of them respected each other and felt gratitude for all the help each of the men were able to provide. This is seen in the story when the only name mentioned is Billy’s; the oiler who drowned while attempting to swim to shore. The mention of Billy’s name is to show respect for the deceased and to remember the brotherhood and courage of Billy’s last days of life.