1. Initial Personal Reaction: My initial reaction to Hemingway’s short story “Soldier’s Home” was at the beginning I was a bit confused on why Krebs returned so late compared to the other soldiers. I felt compassion toward Krebs because he had gone though a great deal and when he returned there was no warm welcome for him. There was nobody for him to talk to. He was all alone. This story is similar to what we are experiencing now with all the soldiers coming home from Iraq. This piece made me think about my dad. He served in Vietnam and to this day I still have not heard a word about it. I have asked him about it several times but he brushes it off and quickly changes the topic.
2. Literary Element/Thematic Analysis: The literary element that stood out to me was that the story was a bit ironic. The home that Krebs returned to after the war was his childhood home but he didn’t seem to feel at home. He seemed to feel more awkward then he did comfortable or relaxed. Moreover, he was quick in wanting to move away and get away from this place that was supposed to be his “home.” I think the author was attempting to say that war changes everything; what people thought they knew, who they once were. That lives are changed forever.
3. Questions/Comments: What do you think the real reason why Krebs said he doesn’t love his mother? Do you think going to war played a part on that? I mean the mother seemed like a very lovely lady who cared deeply about her son.
I was quite shocked to read that Kreb told his mother bluntly that he didn't love her. I tried to compare it to the admiration that he had for the female women in the city. He fancied them, but he was not interested in spending his life with them. I wondered if his lack of affection during the war had any affect as to what he defines as love. The story was from his point of view, and he constantly had said he was not interested in the casual courting. In our time now, what we would say is all he is interested in are one night stands or friends with benefits. Due to that train of thought, he may no longer have that feeling of love. He did not want to lie to his mother and tell her he loved her because the love was no longer an emotion that he possesses.
ReplyDeleteMy interpret that Krebs has lost touch with himself and his feelings. I believe that deep down inside he loves his mother but has lost that sense of feeling. Yes, war did play a big part in his life. Additionally, when he said he didn’t love his mother at the time, I believe, he thought he answered it in the most honest way. Moreover, in actuality deep down he does love his mother, it was expressed through his sympathy.
ReplyDeleteHi Tonya,
ReplyDeleteI agree that the war does change everything, and we have to recognize this especially in our returning soldiers. Some can adapt to things quicker than the others and some have experienced traumatic events more than the others. This story does make me think that our soldier’s need time to process what they have gone through as I believe Howard is going through some PTSD and is trying to separate himself from Krebs the “soldier”. Anyways, this story was somewhat confusing and it would be good to know what the author really means.
The mindset that has to be adopted when coming back home from war is rarely healthy. You don't really want to re live the experiences but a person does need to have some time to adjust to society. when you need to kill someone and you rationalize with yourself it is OK to do so, something inside of you changes you have to change your reality. then to be brought back into an environment that is unappreciative and unaccepting of what you "had" to do is a challenge. Krebs lost the ability to fell for a time,. Most of us with a conscious that have been in wartime don't feel we deserve love, and have to numb ourselves with the idea that we have killed someone. Most of us don't believe that we are worthy of love and affection because we are taught from birth "thou shalt not kill" and we have it takes time to understand we are still a person and deserving of love.
ReplyDelete