When Henry Fielding joined the Union army, he was filled with romantic illusions of warfare. These illusions soon disappeared under the harsh, brutal reality of war. Forces beyond his control and random chance soon drive him to cowardice in battle. The same forces later combine to make his heroism. The Red Badge of Courage is one of the most realistic and frightening desciptions of warfare ever written.

The Red Badge of Courage is Stephen Crane's (1871-1900) masterpiece. It earned Crane an international reputation, but little financially.