A Mystery of Heroism and Other Civil War Stories

Beginning and ending his professional life as a journalist, Stephen Crane found himself pigeonholed into the category of "war reporter" because of the fame brought him by his most famous work, The Red Badge of Courage. (Ironically, he was praised for the authenticity of his war stories though he never actually saw combat himself.) However, Crane was also a skilled poet and satirist, as can be seen in such volumes as The Black Riders and Active Service. He was occasionally joined in his reporting duties by his wife, Cora Taylor; their marriage in 1897 caused a scandal because Taylor was the owner of a brothel in Florida.