Abuse In The Dark Brown Dog By Stephen Crane

I chose to write about the short story named, “The Dark Brown Dog”. This story was written by Stephen Crane in the summer of 1893 and published in the cosmopolitan in March 1901. The setting of the story takes place I’m guessing in the 1920’s based upon the mentioning of the “Cobble Stone Ave”, the main place the story is located, is at the small child family’s house. The characters displayed in the story were, the small child who is the dog’s best friend. The dark brown dog himself, the alcoholic father, the wife, and the child’s siblings (weren’t directly mentioned but can be assumed based on how the author described scenes of abuse to the dog). The plot of the story is sad cycle of abuse. The dog is excessively abused throughout

The ultimate meaning to this story in how I viewed it was, this whole story was about how abuse was being passed down, from one to another. The father to the boy, the boy to the brown dog. The story brings a sad empty feeling to my heart given that this dog would just lay on his back, completely summiting himself to his owners with his paws in the air and offers prayers to the ones that strike him. The dog is offering prayers in regards to change and reform in the family. Abuse can’t be the only way to relay feelings of emotions or drunken mistakes. It is clear the father abuses the child, towards the end of the story where the alcoholic father is appearing to become a belligerent drunk, the small boy dove under the table to protect himself from his abuser. The dog thought it was a game the child was playing, until he was struck with a coffee pot. “He gave a huge howl of joy, and knocked the dog down with a heavy coffee-pot. The dog, yelling in supreme astonishment and fear, writhed to his feet and ran for cover. The man kicked out with a ponderous foot. It caused the dog to swerve as if caught in a