Stephen Crane's short story, "The Open Boat", conveys the experiences of four men who survive a shipwreck and find themselves afloat on a lifeboat in the middle of the ocean. On the surface, the story paints a picture of the dangers of being lost at sea and how four men can come together in a time of trouble and rely on each other for strength and companionship. However, the story also discusses the theme of determinism, or the idea that there are forces acting on an individual, that these forces are beyond the individual's control, and that these forces influence and shape the lives of those upon whom are exercised. . Throughout the story these four men must deal with their own mortality and, above all, with their own insignificance. Crane uses nature in many forms to reflect the concept of determinism; he presents nature in the form of the sea and time, and he also presents nature in the form of the tired and hungry bodies of men. The four survivors on this small boat struggle against these forces acting on them as they fight for survival. In "The Open Boat" Crane pits man against nature, but it is a fight in which at least one of the competitors, nature, does not actively participate and, by showing this, Crane is able to demonstrate changing perceptions as the men on the boat process their predicament and eventually come to the sad realization that there is no one to fight or blame and that nature, in all its manifestations, shows no concern regarding their life or death. First, these men face the obstacle of merely being mortal in need of the crucial basics of human survival such as food, water, and rest. To cope with other p...... middle of paper ...... very little separates these men from impending death and the fact that what stands between them exists and acts outside their realm of influence . It will not be their strength, hard work or perseverance that will defy nature and allow them to live. If nothing else, it is the strength of the man-made boat that must resist the forces that oppose it. Their fate lies in the symbolic hands of nature and man, and everything they do on the lifeboat will bring them closer to life or death. But they have no way of knowing which decisions will take them where, so they must rely on the deterministic factors of life to lead them to safety rather than death, but first they must lose their sense of self-importance and come to terms. with the fact that their survival is in no way considered by nature and other forces that operate in their lives.