If you wish to answer another question besides the one below, try this: Why does Crane refer to the tramp as the "assassin" in "An Experiment in Misery"? Is the term serious? Sardonic? Metaphorical? Does it say as much about the youth as about the tramp?
Is Stephen Crane's "Man Falls, a Crowd Gathers" news? Why or why not? (Feel free to respond to each other's comments, not just the question.) Your response is due by 4 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 2.
25 comments:
Crane is looking from the outside as a journalist, but he is a witness to the frenzy, too.
When the police and doctors arrive at the scene, it seems more news worthy than when certain members of the crowd tried getting involved. The crowd gets more intense and the police have two jobs on their hands instead of taking care of the man. Not sure if the police/doctors getting involved certifies this piece as 'news', although this was more than just narrative journalism by having a public, life-threatening situation in the midst of the city.
Another way to look at this question is the subject is the incident, but the theme is. . . .
I suppose this depends largely upon what one considers to be "news" in the first place.
After all, not every single event that occurs out there can necessarily be considered hard-hitting news. For instance, let's stick with a sidewalk setting. If a child trips over his shoelaces and winds up with a bruise, is that "news"? Probably not, given no one besides the kid's parents will give a shit. On the other hand, if a thief attacks an elderly woman, steals her jewelry, and opens fire on a bunch of onlookers, is that some report-worthy material? Uh, no shit.
Ultimately, I think Crane's piece falls somewhere awkwardly in the middle of this. Typically, I can't imagine the story of one ordinary man's seizure would necessarily make the papers. Still, there are so many other idiosyncratic things going on here, and in the busy, dramatic fashion in which Crane writes, the story is incredibly engrossing.
Crane's "Man Falls, a Crowd Gathers" is news, to me. It can be - and I'm sure has been argued that this story is simply an account of one single event in a busy city, lacking fundamental journalistic elements. However, I kindly disagree.
In this account, Crane is reporting on the human condition. From afar he observes not only what has happened, but how people react to this. His observations speak volumes about the disassociated onlookers, feeding off a stranger's trauma as entertainment, offering fake yelps of concern. Cane's account is news because in his own way, on his own time, he does offer the reader the who, the what, and the where. Crane also provides a detailed description of the depletion of basic human empathy. This to me is news, because this depletion, this detachment is a relevant and rapid human trend worthy of concern and attention.
I completely agree with Samantha.
What makes this piece a news story is not necessarily the subject, which in this case was the man who fell, but the theme of the story. The news Crane chose to deliver was more about the shameless curiosity that overthrew the crowd's ability to help, not the man who fell. In his article, he paints an upsetting picture of how uninvolved people can be, even when somebody is visibly hurt.
Even though Crane’s story did not resemble the common structured news story, he does provide the reader with valuable information. He makes the reader more aware and knowledgeable of the society they live in- alongside giving the reader something to think about, something to interpret, and something they might want to change.
I'm going to have to agree with Samantha and Pamela. According to the criteria that was set out in class today, this would not be news. Not many of the categories that were listed were pertinent in David Crane's story.However, there is a strange sense that his observation and interpretation of the situation was set to reveal a larger and more important issue.This is obviously seen in the title. It shows a downfall of man as a whole, not just this one man. It shows a kind of disconnect between people, that these onlookers don't necessarily think of the man who fell as a person but a sideshow. I think that this definitely counts as news because it sets out to examine the way society works and functions.
The last few comments above seem pretty on the mark to me. Crane’s piece is “subverted” news, as we discussed today in class; rather, it is a “slice of life” that became newsworthy because of the ethical conclusions that can be drawn from these occurrences. As Pam and Jaime touched upon, the use of ambiguous pronouns should have been a huge red flag to readers that the point of Crane telling this story was not necessarily to give every last detail about this event and the man and his life, but rather to draw general conclusions about our societal character based on the actions of “the crowd” or just plain “people” in the story. However, it is the incorporation of details of the scene that make this a literary journalism piece by presenting concrete, factual observations that lend themselves to an abstract concept. For example, Crane twice describes instances in which a light or match is shown over the man who is having a seizure and then describes their reaction in detail. This is an allusion to the fact that this man’s “fit” is “shedding light” on the general human tendency to “rubber neck,” – we cringe when we see something horrific or disgusting, yet we are sure to catch a glimpse just to say we did. As the sign Crane mentions to be behind the crowd suggests (which read “Regular dinner twenty cents”) we feast on grotesque novelty for the shock value, and we seek shocking events because we have become less sensitive to the welfare of others. Our chance to get our blood pumping by seeing a man foam at the mouth is much more important that, you know, helping him, because calling an ambulance and checking his heart rate doesn’t provide that same jolt in our stomachs. That’s the best way I can articulate what Crane was trying to say, why this story is important, why it’s news – the description of the event speaks much louder.
I do think "When Man Falls, A Crowd Gathers" is news, just not in a conventional sense. I looked at it as more of a reflection on mankind than as a straight news story. Sure, it didn't include details like names and ages, but it included other details that gave the story deeper meaning. Like Julie said, it is all about the details Crane chose to include, details that shed light not only on the situation, but on the meaning of the situation. The real issue is not the man on the street having a seizure. It is the underlying depletion of human responsibilty in group dynamics. This is a story I would go and tell someone if I had witnessed it.
I have to agree with Julie's interpretation of the question as to whether Cranes piece is "news" or not. I espicially felt like the idea or criteria of what is newsworthy in this story is decided by the reaction the material is capable of giving to the audience. Crane decided to showcase the lack of care and concern that an event as horrific as this should be backed by. Thats because initially the event, the man's fall, was only news to the man and the young boy until the public could gain something out of it; they could seek entertainment in the man's unfortunate accident. Some crowd members even become rude with one another as they push and shove for thier place to stand and watch, as though their need to see the action is of importance at the time. The end of the story exempflies this point. As soon as help shows up there is no more drama, no more show to be seen and the crowd moves on with their day as if something terribly wrong didn't just happen before their eyes. The "news" thats is being reporting is the fact that this man fell on a crowded steet full of people who would rather satisfy thenselves than help save his life. Everyone asks "whats th' matter" for their own desire to know not to understand the situation and help the guy.
you're all on the right track -- if there is one right track in interpreting literature. You might notice that there's a similarity between this and Allie Duarte's story on LHW, where a group of subway riders also watch a "show." Crane, in effect, forecasts the voyeuristic spectator society we now find ourselves members of.
I have to agree with everyone posting that this is considered news. According to our discussion, this type of writing wouldn't normally be considered news. Cranes doesn't mention names, doesn't give detail in time or place, and doesn't even mention what happens to the man after all of this is over. The details he did give were in things like the lighting of the match and the sign above, like Julie said. "When Man Falls, a Crowd Gathers" held a deeper meaning than what was shown on the surface. It is even shown in the title. The is no specific man he is speaking about, but man as a whole.
In my mind this story wasn't necessarily about what happened it was about what was happening. Crane proves that we as a society have always had a need to be voyeurs of some kind. It's funny because the whole time I was reading this I was thinking that this is crazy, but honestly, it is no suprise that people reacted this way. People thrive on this sort of stuff, to be in the know, to be apart of something.
During the scene where the doctor arrives, I enjoyed the details Craine used in describing the crowd. He called the group of people a "human bit of wreckage at the bottom of the sea." He also mentioned that they "scambled and dodged for position." I think Crane shed light on the general makeup of humans through this news worthy story.
I can’t say I consider “Man Falls, a Crowd Gathers” news. While it is a great literary piece, I’m not sure many people would want to open up a newspaper to read about a man who fell on the ground after a heart attack and people gathered around him. I personally wouldn’t.
While the story does capture a truth about human tendencies, it is definitely not pressing news. Had the man been a senator or a celebrity, then it would likely be news. Had the man died after receiving absolutely no help from the onlooking spectators, that also might be news. And had the man’s fall led to a piece of legislation against rubbernecking, that would be news. But none of that happened.
I could maybe see this in a features section. But news? No, I don’t consider it news.
Like the comments above, I agree. The piece is news, just not the traditional, detached sort of reporting we are conditioned to know as news.
In this piece, I think Crane is writing a social commentary about the way our culture tends to be drawn to the misfortune of others—which tends to be the focus of most news stories. And even more so, the bigger the misfortune usually means more space and higher priority.
The piece says a lot about the news itself. In particular, Crane’s last two sentences really stuck with me. To refresh the memory, when referring to the reaction of the crowd when the ambulance pulls away with the man they had all been watching, Crane writes, “Their eyes expressed discontent at this curtain which had been rung down in the midst of the drama. And this impenetrable fabric suddenly intervening between a suffering culture and their curiosity, seemed to appear to them as an injustice.”
I thought it was a really interesting place to stop the story because in traditional news half the story would still be missing. An editor would want to know what hospital he went to and what condition he was in. It speaks to one of the assumed functions of the reporter, to find out the information an ordinary citizen may not have access to, or essentially pick up where Crane’s story left off.
But his story also touches upon how the press has compromised human integrity and capitalized on it. News has become so detached, formulaic and expected that we, as a culture of media consumers, have become desensitized to human suffering. By expected news, I mean the types of story we read. As unfortunate as it is, you almost expect a story about a car bombing in the Middle East or a some middle aged white guy’s financial scheme uncovered, but you never get the names of the casualties, their ages, how they’re suffering or what they were doing that they were there in the first place.
This detached, formulaic approach makes it hard to care, especially since the details that make these stories real, or the people human, are left for last, so that they can be easily trimmed from the story for the ad that needs to run below. I feel like Crane’s story is an attempt to redefine the news in a way that makes the subjects human. This sort of news tends to focus more on the who, rather than just the solid reporting of what.
I definitely lost count of how many people before me claimed that Crane's story is news, but I agree with them. Though this story doesn't technically fit the guidelines on what makes conventional news, a worthy story is still told. No, it's not necessarily something you would want to see in a newspaper, but less newsworthy things have been published in the past.
I think it's news because it still held important detail and a crisis. Everyone loves a good crisis, whether it be a man collapsing in a busy street in the 19th century, to a huge car accident on the side of the Interstate. We as humans are drawn to crisis, and we have an instinct to watch intently if something goes awry.
Answer the assassin question if you don't wish to say "ditto" to previous comments.
as to "man falls. . .," it raises the question whether we're as responsible for everything we see as we are for everything we do.
I believe that the Stephen Crane piece can be considered News. Maybe not front page headline news, but nonetheless, it is news. Yesterday in class, we defined news as current, and changing. Therefore, I believe this is news.
Last year in Media Ethics, we had a discussion about the blurb in the newspaper with the minor criminal actions of the past week or so. The discussion was about whether that was news, and I believed it was. Police news and health news, are news regardless of how important or how significant.
It is up to the reader to decide whether it is worth their time to read it.
I guess I'd have to say when Cranes first says "he appeared like an assassin steeped in crimes preformed awkwardly," this shows that tramp is being called an assassin in a sardonic manner. The tramp is clumsy, uncertain, and unorganized whereas an assassin must be confident, skilled at his work and preform tasks with precision.
Also this idea is reinforced later when the tramp brought the young man to the "chill place of tombstones, where men lay like the dead." SO, in effect the tramp was this sort of assassin that brought him to this metaphorical place of death.
Reading Crane's piece was interesting. I was actually able to visualize the setting. It was a great way to put an event into a story that was easy for readers to read. News needs rarity and I feel that the reactions from the onlookers are rare. I don't understand why people would see someone who is hurt and their best instinct is to watch. That reminds me of those annoying and sickening videos, that get posted on Youtube, that are of people fighting. The person who posted it may not know who they are but their intuition was to record the fight. That's some great thinking!
If this story was written in the conventional journalistic style, I probably wouldn't have been able to see the policeman's initial attitude toward the situation. And I wouldn't have known the reaction of the crowd as well. This story wouldn't have had such an impact if it wasn't written in a narrative form. Unfortunately, this will probably be the same reaction anyone would get if they collapse on the street. It makes me wonder why?
And I just realized I never actually wrote my opinion on whether it was news or not. (I had it in my head, I just forgot to type it.) I do think this piece is news. I'm sure it wouldn't be headline news, but it should still be in the paper. I agree with the comments above in that it's up to the people to decide if they will take the time out to read the story. The way it was written makes it very interesting to read.
Within Crane’s story, “An Experiment in Misery,” the youth comes from a middle class upbringing and dresses down for his travels in attempts to experience how the other half lives. As he walks the streets, he meets the tramp and wants to embody the impoverished life that the tramp lives each day. Throughout the night that he spends with him, the youth deals with internal obstacles. He perceives the homeless shelter as, “a strange effect of a graveyard, where bodies were merely flung.” The youth is made uncomfortable by everything around him; the naked bodies, people screaming in their sleep and even the smells that he has never recognized before.
To an average lower class individual who is desperate for a place to stay, this homeless shelter could appear as the ultimate safe haven. However to the youth, a member of the middle class, his habitual experiences were thrown into a foreign world, and he dealt with extreme inner turmoil. In the beginning when Crane describes the tramp as, “an assassin steeped in crimes performed awkwardly,” I believe this name was used in a sardonic manner. At this time in the story, the youth believed the tramp was scheming, and he even took him for a crook. However, as I continued to read, I found that as the youth spent more time with the assassin, the name could have been used as a metaphor for the demise of the youth’s innocence. The assassin allowed the youth to experience how the lowest of the low lives. He brought the youth to a place where he witnessed the closest he has ever seen to death, human beings pulling at their last straws to eat, sleep and survive. I think it was then that the youth realized that the assassin wasn’t a crook; he was merely a drunk trying to find enough food each day, and a bed at night.
1st, in regards to the preface in class, I did some research and found that the reason our book is missing the part is because Crane himself deleted the preface after the original publication when he "revised the work for book publication in 1896." -http://grammar.about.com/od/classicessays/a/craneexperiment.htm
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I think the term "assassin" is used as a way to illustrate the trap's condition/character. He is introduced as this sort of disheveled man on a mission. I think it is in that and the image that Crane gives me of the man having very keen eyes that makes him an assassin.
Within Crane’s story, “An Experiment in Misery,” the youth comes from a middle class upbringing and dresses down for his travels in attempts to experience how the other half lives. As he walks the streets, he meets the tramp and wants to embody the impoverished life that the tramp lives each day. Throughout the night that he spends with him, the youth deals with internal obstacles. He perceives the homeless shelter as, “a strange effect of a graveyard, where bodies were merely flung.” The youth is made uncomfortable by everything around him; the naked bodies, people screaming in their sleep and even the smells that he has never recognized before.
To an average lower class individual who is desperate for a place to stay, this homeless shelter could appear as the ultimate safe haven. However to the youth, a member of the middle class, his habitual experiences were thrown into a foreign world, and he dealt with extreme inner turmoil. In the beginning when Crane describes the tramp as, “an assassin steeped in crimes performed awkwardly,” I believe this name was used in a sardonic manner. At this time in the story, the youth believed the tramp was scheming, and he even took him for a crook. However, as I continued to read, I found that as the youth spent more time with the assassin, the name could have been used as a metaphor for the demise of the youth’s innocence. The assassin allowed the youth to experience how the lowest of the low lives. He brought the youth to a place where he witnessed the closest he has ever seen to death, human beings pulling at their last straws to eat, sleep and survive. I think it was then that the youth realized that the assassin wasn’t a crook; he was merely a drunk trying to find enough food each day, and a bed at night.
I believe Crane's piece was news, though it does not seem to be based on what was discussed in class. It isn't necessarily news when any one person falls, however, it draws the attention of the people around him. One man falling in a crowd is not going to make headlines, but the piece itself held a deeper meaning. It was to take a look at society. The man falling was not the news, the reaction of the people around him is what the news was. The fact that they gathered and stared at a man who had fallen like he was a side show of some sort says a lot about society today. It shows the tendency of people to watch something bad happening and not do anything about it, almost as if it were on television. It is almost like they subconsciously viewed it as some form of entertainment or excitement, which is the real story, not the man falling.
I think Crane refers to the tramp as the assassin seriously, and metaphorically at the same time. He isn't kidding when he calls the tramp an assassin, but he's being metaphorical in the sense that the tramp is not literally killing a person, but is instead "killing" his notions of the homeless, and I would wager he is also killing the way he perceives the world.
I agree with Sarah's analysis of the youth infiltrating the world that he is not a part of. By living like a tramp, the youth is gaining knowledge in such a level that it would be impossible for him to gain in any other manner.
Since we are reading a piece focused on the youth, I would assume (and I could be wrong for assuming so, we all know what they say about what happens when you assume,)that by the author referring to the tramp as an assassin, this is the role that Crane intended for the tramp to have - this is his function in the piece. He is killing the youth's notions of how the poor live, or even what a "poor" person is.
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