In the story “The Open Boat” by Stephen Crane, it is made quite clearly that that nature is not sympathetic to anyone in its way. Constantly through this story, Crane makes it very clear that nature is indifferent to mankind. Nothing is going to stop its course. Through out the story, nature plays a big role. It changes peoples mindset, changes the stories plot, and decides on a persons life. Nature is a blessing and a curse, it all depends on what it has planned for you. In “The Open Boat” Crane has nature playing a consistent, unavoidable role. Natures role is consistent and almost monotonous. We see nature being used as a comparison in this story when the correspondent says the horizon is appearing and hiding again behind the waves like the mens unsure future. It is also used as a plot changer in this story. For example when they are floating in the boat and suddenly see tourists waving at them. They get all excited because they think they will be saved but then no help comes, and the ocean drags them farther back to see with the strong current. Through this reading nature could and would be very harsh at times. nature primarily sunk their main vessel in the first place with a big storm. Then when they were in the small boat, waves constantly came, no mercy. Crashing over the side of the boat, waves would flood the already precarious boat, making death a glooming option. This shows how powerful nature can be, the men couldn't do much about it. All they could do was ride out whatever nature gave them and try to stay alive. “The correspondent wondered if none ever ascended the tall wind-tower, and if then they never looked seaward. This tower was a giant, standing with its back to the plight of the ants. It represented in a degree, to the correspondent, the serenity of nature amid the struggles of the individuals - nature in the wind, and nature in the vision of men. She did not seem cruel to him then, nor beneficent, nor