The Red Badge of Courage focuses on the moral world of a young man in the Union Army, Henry Fleming. He has deserted his regiment in the clash and horror of battle, deluding himself with specious arguments of self-preservation, only to discover that his group has won the day. He finds himself among the wounded, and they treat him as though he is wounded himself, which fills him with shame at his cowardice and desertion. He goes back to his comrades, vowing to cleanse himself through bravery in battle. He redoubles his assault on the Confederate foe, grasping the standard of battle from a dying man and carrying it bravely forward. At last, his conscience is clear, and his self-inflicted wound of cowardice has been healed.《红色勇气徽章》（1895年）是一部生动的心理学作品，讲述了一个年轻人在美国内战中的战斗经历，这部作品是基于克雷恩对战争的通俗描述。其叙事的强烈性和自然主义的力量使克雷恩获得了立竿见影的成功，并导致他花费了他一生中的大部分时间来报道战争。这本书中收集的其他故事都借鉴了这一经验；《敞篷船》（1898年）的灵感来源于他在古巴远征途中沉船后与海浪搏斗了50个小时；《怪物》（1899年）是一篇讽刺性文章，讲述了一名医生为了窝藏仆人而遭到的排斥，这名仆人被毁容并且失去了他的理智来救他的儿子。作为美洲哥特式风格起重机的一个罕见例子，它对种族和社会不公的处理尤为引人注目。`蓝色酒店“追踪导致内布拉斯加州小镇一家酒吧谋杀的事件。这本书是克雷恩作品中注释最为宽泛的一本，从新的批评角度对其进行了探索，并着重于他作为实验作家现代主义遗产以及他的社会和文学修正主义地位。