The Poem War Is Kind By Stephen Crane

The poem “War is Kind” was written by Stephen Crane in 1899. He was born after the civil war, but died before WWI. Crane wrote this poem about the civil war and the men who fought in it. The poem has three different themes: Warfare, The Home, and Patriotism. “War is Kind” does not mean that war is actually kind it is just saying that people are willing to go into battle and sacrifice their lives for their country. War is cruel, not kind, the exact opposite of what Crane repeats throughout the poem.

The theme warfare is about people going into battle. War kills hundreds of men and that was what Crane was emphasizing. “Little souls” are the very young men being trained and taught how to fight in battles. “Hoarse, booming drums of the regiment” are the drummers playing on their drums. It could also represent the gunshots and cannon explosions going off and hitting troops or buildings. “Great is the battle-god, great, and his kingdom” means that someone like god may or does have control over the battlefield and has a nice kingdom, but is full of dead bodies.
They are heartbroken because their loved one has gone to war and died. It takes place at home rather than on the battlefield where the men are doing most of the fighting. “Heart hung humble” means that the heart is broken and they are sad after what has happened to their loved ones. “your lover threw wild hands” is telling you that the loved one is not all lost but is just in a different place and will always be with you. “your father tumbled in the yellow trenches” is saying that being at home with their loved ones is just as important as going to battle and protecting your