Fictional content is often written to present imaginary which may not be true. They are however important in deepening our understanding of other people’s perspectives about life. They also help the reader to have a different picture about the world. In this essay, we review Hemingway ‘Soldier’s Home’ with the intention of establishing how fiction has been used to develop important themes in the life of human beings. The story is about Krebs who was recruited to fight in the World War 1. Upon his return, he finds it very difficult to survive in the small-town life. This story is developed using vital themes which form the basis of this essay. The theme of isolation comes out clearly in this fictional short story. Harold Krebs had initially been living in their small town with the rest of his fellows just before he went to war. During the period before the war, Harold used to lead a normal life. However, he is met by a rude shock when he comes back home.
He has been in war for two years now, but when he comes back, he feels like he no longer fits in that society. Krebs tries to find his position in the town, but he cannot just fit. No one understands him is that they were not at war to share his experiences there. He tries his best to relate to these people, but it seems that it is not working out. Therefore, he decides to alienate himself from the rest of society and live a solitary life. Krebs is lonely as a result of choosing to alienate himself from the rest of the society. This alienation knows no boundaries; he does not even relate well with members of his family. His mother tries to ask him questions about the war, but he is disappointed that his own mother is not even concentrating. This demoralizes him and continues to add to his decision to stay away from the rest of the community. Krebs finds it quite belittling that his mother still refers to him as a little boy.
He is more confused about how to deal with his emotions now that the society does not even understand him. According to him, getting too close to people will make him lose them just as he lost friends in the war. Hemingway uses Krebs to illustrate how the impact of war can isolate an individual from things that he would usually do or believe before the war. For Krebs, he has a different perception of life. This perception of life made him more isolated from society since he doesn’t believe or think alike the society he belongs. For example, having witnessed mass killings of individuals in the war, changed his views about God and religion.
This made him have a dispute with his mother. When he is asked by his mother to pray together, he refuses. He no longer believes in God and this isolated him with his own mother who just wanted to pray with his son. Krebs’s no longer feels love for people he used to. The changes he has to live with are eating him up that he has to lie to coexist with other members of the family. He no longer cherishes dating and attending ball games as before. This implies that he has isolated himself from the rest of society. Hemingway presents a broken Krebs who no longer loves his mother. In a bid to cover up this though, he has to lie about it to his mother. Krebs is indeed suffering from a lost identity and a completely changed lifestyle. He has changed dramatically and he finds it difficult to lead the simple life he used to have before he went to war. Krebs’s life has been so drastically affected by the war that he finds it so hard to regain his initial lifestyle.
All his attempts to restore normal lifestyle are getting derailed by the experiences at war. This is worsened by the fact that he was never recognized by the community like other soldiers were. Although he returned later, he believes he still deserves the same honor that the rest of the soldiers had been accorded. This makes him feel bitter about even having gone to combat in the first place. Krebs is resultantly developing the idea of sleeping late and not talking to anyone. In summary, in the fictional story ‘Soldier’s Home’, Hemingway has applied a variety of themes to ensure that he passes the intended message to his audience. One such theme is that of isolation. Krebs has been to war and feels alienated and lonely when he finally comes back home. He feels like he no longer fits in the society as his former classmates and even other soldiers at war are leading a completely different life from his. In order to survive, Krebs has to lie about everything and no longer enjoys things he cherished like dating. Finally, Krebs no longer has faith in God like before. Having experienced many die in the war, he does not believe in the existence of God. This implies that war has affected Krebs’ normal life.
