Hemingway Soldier's Home Analysis

Ernest Hemmingway’s Soldier’s Home tells the story of a young man named Harold Krebs’ experiences after returning home from World War 1. He struggles to readjust to civilian life, he wants things to be easy but he cannot connect with anything emotionally. Krebs can’t bring himself to tell the truth about what he went through; even if he could, no one wants to hear it anymore. He came back from the war later than other soldiers who have already adapted to post-war life, so not only is he an outsider from his community, he is an outsider amongst the only people he has with shared life experiences. As a result of this, he becomes detached and emotionally numb to cope with his inability to handle what his life has become. This story is still celebrated

The war was such a massive conflict, with such a staggering death toll, that it was difficult for many people who experienced it to relate to normal experiences again. Very little seemed to matter when contrasted with the enormity of what they’d seen and done. This is seen in the story in how Krebs can’t see the point to doing anything anymore, “he did not want to get into the intrigue and the politics. He did not want to have to do any courting. He did not want to tell any more lies” (167). He wants a life free of consequences because went through real consequences in the war and doesn’t want to experience that again. This is relatable today because war has become even more advanced and horrifying than it had been nearly 100 years ago. Society is capable of massive levels of destruction that leaves the homefront unscathed, which makes it a struggle for many people to reconcile what they have seen and done with the expectations society places on them once they return home. No matter how extreme things get, life continues to move forward and makes few accommodations for people who can’t keep