ipl-logo

The Blue Hotel Essay

924 Words4 Pages

In the short story “The Blue Hotel,” the author Stephen Crane is accomplished with his use of symbolism and details of setting to foreshadow what is to come in the story. From the moment the hotel owner, Scully, brings a Swede and two others to his Palace Hotel, there is tension. The Swede constantly acts strange and as the story progresses the Swede announces that he will be killed while at the hotel. Contrary to his belief, he dies by being slit in the throat at a bar. Crane uses the setting of the Wild West, a blizzard, and symbolic colors to express the central idea that people tend to prophesize the worst when in a new environment. Starting with his broadest detail of setting, Crane uses the Wild West to create the main conflict of the story. The Swede is from New York which means that he has spent his life among tall buildings and in cities. So, …show more content…

In the very beginning, Crane gives a detailed description of the Palace Hotel, most of it entailing the vast uses of the color blue. It is a light blue that “was always screaming and howling” (315) in a way that is “sufficiently enticing” (315). The color blue is often picked to show symbolism of some sort whether it is sadness or relaxation and peace. In this case, it is chosen represent an oasis among the bleak background. So, in other words, a safe place among the chaos. This creates irony because the Swede believes this is where he will die, but it is actually going to protect him from the danger of the real Wild West. However, the Swede leaves and he comes across the color red right before entering a bar. A “red light was burning, and the snowflakes were made blood colour as they flew through the circumscribed territory of the lamp’s shining” (330). Red is a symbolism that cannot be ignored. In all scenarios, it is a clear warning of danger or a sign to stop. Nonetheless, the Swede in all his madness, walks in and gets himself

Show More
Related
829 Words | 4 Pages

Gerry Boyle and Stephan King are two of the more popular Main authors who both specialize in creating fictional mystery and action novels. Even though both of the author’s novels are set in the state of Maine and can be categorized under the same two words, they both bring you into two very different stories. Focusing on the literary elements imagery, character development and theme we can easily compare and contrast Gerry Boyle’s Port City Shakedown and Blaze by Stephan King. Imagery is a very important literary element in a story and depending on the person, can be the one element that determines whether a book is interesting, or not. Blaze and Port City Shakedown have some similar and some different ways of depicting the state of

Read More
272 Words | 2 Pages

Stephan Cane is the author of “The Blue Hotel” set at the Palace Hotel in Fort Romper, Nebraska in the 1900s. Patrick Scully is the owner of the Palace Hotel, Johnnie Scully is Patrick’s son. The Swede is the dominant character who is eventually killed by the gambler. Cowboy, Bill, supports Johnnie encouraging him to kill the Swede. Easterner, Mr. Blanc, is quiet at first but then becomes involved after the dispute.

Read More
842 Words | 4 Pages

The nonfiction novel, The Devil in the White City, focuses on two significant figures, architect Daniel Burnham and serial killer H. H. Holmes. Erik Larson uses juxtaposition, imagery, and figurative language in order to portray the distinct differences between Burnham’s and Holmes’s worlds,

Read More
964 Words | 4 Pages

How many miles it had traveled to die like this, in our yard, beneath the bleeding tree” (line 314). In this line, the mention of the color red/scarlet is brought up. The color red not only has lots of foreshadowing, but lot’s of repetition in this story. The color is symbolized with death. Through all of the foreshadowing, this really helped the reader make connections throughout the

Read More
780 Words | 4 Pages

The tense relationship between Henry and his father in Jamie Ford’s Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet arises from their inability to communicate effectively as a result of their conflicting desires regarding their cultural opinions. Henry's father is an anti-Japanese Chinese person, and he has Henry attend an all-white school, and he additionally mandates he speak English at home. As Henry’s dad does not understand English yet is forcing his son not to speak the language around him, they have no way to communicate, resulting in a severe loss of communication between the two. Young Henry Lee stopped talking to his parents when he was twelve years old. Not because of some silly childhood tantrum, but because they asked him to.

Read More
1287 Words | 6 Pages

American journalist and author Erik Larson’s nonfiction novel The Devil In the White City establishes a theme of perception that is prevalent throughout the text. Larson’s use of this theme is intended for the reader to see that the way things are perceived by an audience is not necessarily the way they truly are; many times the characters in this novel will see something that the narrator will later prove inaccurate. He imposes a strong contrast between what is seen and what is there to convey the concept that things within this novel can have a completely different meaning than what they appear to, paralleling the theme of good vs. bad. The similar motifs that are portrayed within the text bring together one idea that the character’s perception of danger is skewed within the setting and timeframe of this novel.

Read More
432 Words | 2 Pages

The colour blue is associated with understanding, softness, and knowledge. Winston gains knowledge throughout the novel, but becomes softer over time. This softness that came from his love for Julia and his blind trust towards Obrien is what leads to his downfall. When Winston believed Obrien was a kindred spirit he felt connected to him and letting go of that connection further isolates himself, leading to his breakdown and allegiance to Big Brother. Originally, the colour was a mixture of blue, yellow and red, but painters now mix it blue and black or blue and dark red to obtain the colour.

Read More
787 Words | 4 Pages

After finally leaving the hotel he heads to a saloon in the town behind the hotel, Romper, where he is stabbed by the Gambler and meets his final resting place. This whole situation is ironic as if he was not paranoid of being killed nothing after would have occurred and there could have been a good chance the Swede was not going to be killed. This situation helps support the idea that the quote describing Stephen Crane applies to the story as it shows how the story itself is an

Read More
633 Words | 3 Pages

The beautiful yet deadly Yukon winter is a dangerous place for a lonely traveler. Jack London’s “To Build a Fire” depicts such a beautiful yet dangerous place. In this story, a man must travel a long distance across the frozen tundra and risk freezing to death in the elements. However, this man is not familiar enough with his environment to understand the danger he faces. Throughout this short story, the author uses specific word choices, or diction, to create a somber, fatalistic, and irate mood.

Read More
1008 Words | 5 Pages

Red is usually a mystery when it comes to stories and is determined by the context of what’s going on with the character’s life. Sometimes it means lust romance and love other times it’s used to describe violence, anger, and evil. It’s well-known that the devil is painted red in stories for a reason. The symbol of red in Heart of Darkness should obviously take a darker approach. The narrator is describing his entrance into the Congo and states, “There was a vast amount of red - good to see at any time, because one knows that some real work is done in there,”( ).

Read More
782 Words | 4 Pages

Without a theme, there cannot be characters, and without characters, there can be no show of determinism. Both London and Crane combine two themes in their stories. The theme of man versus nature and man versus himself. In Jack London’s “To Build a Fire,” the man in the story is constantly in a battle against the cold winter in temperatures “fifty degrees below” (“To Build a Fire” 810). The man also faces an even greater challenge of fighting against himself and to keep on going though ultimately failing when he “drowsed off….

Read More
1634 Words | 7 Pages

Review of literature Pyogenic brain abscess: Introduction: A brain abscess is defined as a focal sup¬purative infection of the brain parenchyma comprising of immune cells, pus and other materials of the brain. It may be bacterial or pyogenic, fungal or parasitic. Pyogenic brain abscess are the most frequently encountered in the clinical practice (1). It is one of the most serious and potentially a life threatening condition. In the developing countries, incidence of brain abscess is approximately 8% of the intracranial masses where as it comprises 1-2% in the western countries (2).

Read More
437 Words | 2 Pages

Blue represents illusions or alternatives to reality. Most of Gatsby’s house is described as blue. Everything about Gatsby is an illusion a person made up by himself.

Read More
149 Words | 1 Pages

The selected passage from Stephen Crane’s “The Blue Hotel” uses caustic and aggressive language to describe its scene. The narrator describes the setting in terms of “a turmoiling sea of snow” and “a still man … [standing] aghast amid this profligate fury.” That the narrator chooses these specific descriptions gives the scene an undercurrent of violence and tension. He traps the characters in the room, as well, stating “no island of the sea could be exempt in the degree of this little room.” That is, the narrator is suggesting that the characters cannot escape each other or the scene and the vague threat that colors it.

Read More
554 Words | 3 Pages

Although most of the work is covered by subtle colors, there is a small area of red in the form of a fire. The color red is used to signify passion, energy, strength and power. This sharp contrast between the red and blue is apparent and is done on purpose and distinctly. As you can see in the artwork, the fire is representing his agony.

Read More

More about The Blue Hotel Essay

Related Topics

Open Document