Themes In Stephen Crane's The Blue Hotel

The Blue Hotel written by Stephen Crane describes an extremely unfortunate circumstance in which an individual meets a gruesome end. However, a meaning behind this story can be found under the lines of the events that preceded and occurred after the character died. From these events we can find a theme which is the ultimate cause for this person dying, The theme being described is that, when individuals assume, or when individuals either act too quickly or fail to act at all bad things can happen. From these three themes we can find the main reasons for why the character in the story who was named The Swede was murdered.

The first theme describes that bad things can occur when people assume things before truly knowing what is going
This particular theme is similar to the previous due to it 'causing bad things to happen,' but it is important mainly because it includes the one action that causes the Swede to switch locations, taking him to the locale of his own demise. Decisively, the action which caused the location switch of the Swede, was the comments and animosity of the Cowboy during the fight between the Swede and Johnny. This most likely in the Swede's mind, was the proof needed for his prior assumptions to be correct and it caused him to travel to the bar, where he was killed. Rashness in the case presented caused the Swede's death through a lack of thought and care when those two things were needed in a heated
This is clearly pointed in the story through the Easterner who flat out admits to not doing anything, even when knowing a truth that could have possibly prevented the fight between the Swede and Johnny, the truth being that Johnny really did cheat at the game of cards. If the Easterner had told Scully about what had happened, Scully might not have allowed the fight to continue. Another example of a lack of action is with Johnny, who is Scully's son. At the end of the story, the Easterner admits that Johnny was truly cheating in the card game, and that if he had told them that it was so, then the Swede wouldn't have died. Another example is when the bar tenderis tending to the Swede after the Swede leaves the Blue Hotel. Instead of acting when it was necessary, the bartender, and even the other gentlemen do nearly nothing as the scene of the Swede choking the Gambler plays out. Regardless, in both points in the story we are shown when someone doesn't act when action is necessary, it can cause a bad situation to get