Stephen Crane

My Cross!

My Cross! - meaning Summary

Modern Material Burdens

Stephen Crane’s short poem reframes the idea of a cross from religious suffering to economic hardship. The speaker rejects traditional crucifixion imagery, arguing that the ‘‘real cross’’ is made of currency and that modern pain stems from lack of money. The poem uses ironic, blunt language to claim that material deprivation, not nails or martyrdom, is the primary source of human affliction in contemporary life.

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Your cross? The real cross Is made of pounds, Dollars or francs. Here I bear my palms for the silly nails To teach the lack —The great pain of lack— Of coin.

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