Unresolved conflicts and suspended ethics: Reading “The Monster” from the perspective of voice

Abstract This article draws on rhetorical narrative theory and makes a case for Stephen Crane’s employment of the resource voice to communicate the naturalistic theme of “The Monster”. It argues that by modulating voices on different communicative tracks, the author invites us to recognize two pairs of conflicting forces: one of free will and external forces that shows in the causes of Henry’s and Trescott’s heroic acts, and the other of individual agency and collective identity that characterizes the narrative’s engagement with Whilomville. It is my view that the author invites readers to share his naturalistic outlook and refrain from making conclusive ethical judgments on the characters and the community. For readers, attending to the synthesis of tone, style, and values in utterances helps with inferring the author’s rhetorical purposes. To this end, the article also considers Crane’s biographical information and newspaper sketches, calling for the inclusion of contextual and intertextual matters in rhetorical criticism.