Examples Of Krebs Behavior In A Soldier's Home

A Soldier’s House In Ernest Hemingway’s Soldier’s Home, a man named Krebs finally arrives home two years after World War I ended, only to find that everyone has moved on. The question this story brings up is what the reader makes of Krebs’ behavior. On one side of the debate, Krebs’ adamant dismissal of his mother accompanied by his disinterest to find work comes off as a childish and almost infantile disposition. In contrast to that, Krebs’ secretive nature and inability to move on from the war reveals a misunderstood veteran. Steven Trout mentioned in his article that the story was not “an account of its creator’s personal experiences, disguised as fiction, but as a reflection of post-World War I American veterans’ issues” (“Where Do We Go From Here?”).While the class decided Krebs’ behavior is childish, Krebs actually acts the way he does because he cannot reintegrate with his home and therefore cannot come home. …show more content…
Hemingway begins the story with Krebs stating “people seemed to think it was rather ridiculous for Krebs to be getting back so late, years after war was over” (1). The story is set after World War I and Krebs is faced with the realization that the world has moved on without him; they do not care anymore. This is a town that knows nothing of the horror of the war except for what soldiers have told them, thus isolating Krebs from the people he was fighting to protect. It could be said that Krebs is simply not trying to move forward as he “does not feel the energy or the courage to break into” the town and girls’ niches (Hemingway 2). The lack of motivation could actually be depression brought on from what he has seen in the war. Furthermore, due to the time period and his role as a soldier, the setting helps reveal Krebs’ inability to return home from the