An Experiment in Misery (Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Stephen Crane
- First Published: 1894
- Type of Plot: Social realism
- Time of Work: 1894
- Setting: The Bowery section of New York
- Principal Characters: A young man, The “assassin
- Genres: Realism, Short fiction
- Subjects: Class conflict, Poverty or poor people, Fate or fatalism, Wealth
- Locales: New York, NY
The Story
Late one rainy night, a shabbily dressed young man trudges along a New York street taunted by voices calling him a bum. As he reaches City Hall Park, he seeks companionship but spots only well-dressed people on their way home. Moving on to Chatham Square, where the pedestrians’ clothes match his “tatters,” he sees a saloon sign that advertises “Free hot soup tonight.” Moving through its swinging doors, which snap “to and fro like ravenous lips,” the youth is served a schooner of frothy beer and a bowl of watery chicken broth. Turning down a second...
[The entire page is 1614 words long]
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