لخّصلي

‏Hemingway's "Soldier's Home"

‏Themes & Conflict: Conformity, Integration into society, Futility of war, War is unheroic, alienation from society, trauma caused by war, society's lack of understanding others' suffering and is very judgmental so it is indifferent to soldiers' real conditions. The inability to understand a real war experience or sympathize. A Modern story: inability to pray
‏Depression and psychological problems
‏Isolation
‏No communication
‏Ambiguity about what really happened to him

‏External Conflict with society and its demands then he starts to make up lies because no one wants to listen to his tragic experience at war. Internal conflict: Krebs struggles with his own suffering due to war and going back to his previous life or meeting society's expectations. Internal conflict:
‏Krebs is forced to lie to people about war because they want stories of bravery and heroism but feels sick as he makes up all these lies and feels terrible about himself. Irony: it is ironic that Krebs is expected to come back as a hero who is celebrated for fighting a war but he comes back depressed, traumatized by the war, lonely and scared and his return was not celebrated at all because he came much later than other soldiers. It tells the tale of Harold Krebs, a soldier returning late from World War I. Krebs struggles with reintegrating into a post war society. Harold sees reintegration as conforming to a society he no longer feels he belongs in. In "Soldier's Home," Hemingway uses conflict to show how society demands conformity, and the unfair struggles of those who do not fit the mold."He did not want any consequences ever again. He wanted to live along without consequences" writes Hemingway (349).Hemingway paints a dark picture of how society demands that all participants fall in line with mainstream ideals.Krebs arrives home too late for the heroes welcome, and instead finds a society interested only in lies not the realities of war.These lies are acceptable, because they allow Krebs to fit neatly into society's expectations of him and others.His home town immediately impresses its demand for conformity upon Harold's arrival.It lends to the idea that Hemingway himself was an outsider...He makes up lies to please his listeners as they want stories of heroism and bravery and not fear and panic which is the reality of war.This gives insight into the conflict raging inside of Krebs.Krebs experiences the conflict of the town's rules that dictate he should court a girl and get married and settle down.Harold Krebs returns from World War I having lost everything