...March 2012 “Soldier’s Home” In a “Soldier’s Home” Ernest Hemingway helps many people to get a better understanding of what soldiers go through when they get home. Throughout the story, the reader can see how a soldier named Krebs tries to fit back into society after World War I. Krebs comes home with post-traumatic stress disorder and has troubles fitting back into society. Nobody understands what he is going through, not even his parents. He even has to lie about some of his stories from World War I to make them exciting, so people will want to listen to him. These and other issues are part of the plot of “Soldier’s Home.” Hemingway uses the literary elements of plot, characterization, tone, and irony to further develop the theme of a story involving the hardship he faces of finding a place. Many do not think Hemingway is a great American author, but one has to disagree because the plot of a “Soldier’s Home” shows what soldiers must endure when they get back home to America from World War I. The basic outline in the story is simple enough. It shows how a man named Krebs has come home from World War I to face an even greater challenge against not only himself but also against society. While fighting in the war, Krebs probably sees many of his friends die right beside him. This makes it extremely difficult for him to get close to anyone because he is in fear of him or her either leaving him or dying. Also, he is still a little shocked when he gets home. This gives him a numb...
Words: 1539 - Pages: 7
...Where was his place now in this town-his hometown? Interestingly, the story, "Soldier's Home" does not describe the town the way it was before Krebs left for the war. We are inclined to reason however, that is had not changed during Krebs's absence from it. In the first paragraph, we see a picture of Krebs with his fraternity brothers in front of a Methodist college. All of them are wearing the same collar. We see no differences in their appearances. This could indicate that Krebs fit into his hometown before he went to war, but certainly not after. Part of Krebs' "home" before the war was his religious beliefs. We are told in the first sentence of the story that he went to a Methodist college. During the war and after, his experience affected him to such a great deal that he could then not even pray. Many people lose their belief in God. There was much more to this loss for Krebs however. We are led to believe that his mother was deeply religious. How hard it would have been for Krebs to disregard in public his animosity towards God now. Anyone can pray out loud and not mean their words. Their faith cannot be seen to other people. Therefore, Krebs went along with this formality of praying with his mother for her sake, not his. His home before the war was filled with God filled days at the college. During the war he must have searched for God and not found him. That is why on his return to his hometown, he does not see the point of blindly believing any longer. Krebs seemed...
Words: 598 - Pages: 3
...Essay Soldier’s Home & Captain Savage and His Battlefield Raiders Many War veterans says every fight leaves a scar, and sometimes some of these scars won’t heal. The story “Soldier’s Home” by Ernest Hemingway is about a young American soldier returning home, after having been to war in Europe. After settling down at home he feels miss placed as if no one can or will understand how he feels. This results in the young man commits, what seems to be, suicide The story’s main character called Krebs returns home after having served at the frontlines in WWI. As he returns he immediately feels that something is wrong, and he realises that he has changed drastically leaving him as an empty shell without any real feelings. At the same time he experiences he has the need to tell his story, so that he could have his deeds accepted, but instead of listening to him, everybody neglects him, because of the fact, that it is war stories, and everybody had already been fed up with war stories from the other veterans returning home earlier then Krebs. Krebs story is a good example on what could happened if a person is neglected after having endure the trauma of having been witness to the cruelties of war, friends dying, children killed. Even today, many war veterans suffers of the same kind of trauma as Krebs did, and today many of the war veterans commits suicide because of the lack of help being offered for their service. As a person Krebs seems to be a polite person who have seen...
Words: 778 - Pages: 4
...a part of the military comes with a lot of amenities and benefits. One of the most popular amenities offered to soldiers and their family members is housing. As a soldier, the army pays for your living arrangements. Soldiers are given a basic housing allowance; with that allowance, soldiers can either choose to live on post or off post. There are pros and cons to both ways of living. A few things to consider are bills, maintenance and your basic housing allowance and security. Many soldiers have their own preference to why it’s better to live on post or off post. Speaking as a member of a military family, I believe it’s better to live on post and be secure financially, but some people beg to differ. Living on post can be good for most soldiers and their families. The army gives soldiers a basic housing allowance. The normal rate for the basic housing allowance is $1000.00. If the decision is made to live on post, the army keeps that allowance and provides a nice home. One of the pros of moving on post is there are no utility bills. Some soldiers are not used to paying bills, and often pay bills late. So living on post is a great idea for soldiers and their families that are just starting out. Another amenity offered on post is the maintenance. If there is any maintenance issues or problems with the home you’re living in, the army will send someone to your home to fix it for free. Security is also something most young parents worry about. In a military housing neighborhood...
Words: 608 - Pages: 3
...Significance of literature in Hemingway’s writings as a “soldier” Literature as a soldier can be of importance in that it is reflected by one of Hemingway’s writing “Soldier’s home” which depicts the life of a young soldier at war who faces challenges and in the end he returns home. It gives clear information on the experience a soldier faces in the war and the shock the soldier gets when he returns back at home. The main character in the book, Harold Krebs is challenged back in his own hometown by the villagers when he and other soldiers return from the war. He is majorly faced with hostility from his opposition members in the society. He as the soldier in the book, literature is important in that Krebs shows the meaning of repetition, characterization including the symbolism in the field of literature. It is true that literature is given power to display the symbolism giving the literal meaning of the events in the book. With symbolism in the book, “Soldier’s home”; gives a soldier profession to have a meaning that is concrete. It gives war to be the main theme while when Krebs returns home, being a soldier becomes a fascinating idea to him. All this is revealed when he returns back home remembering all the challenges he faced during the war. This gives a learning experience to the reader by understanding the real essence of becoming a soldier. It gives the reader the knowledge to understand the profession of becoming a soldier and prepares the reader to be ready for the task. Literature...
Words: 404 - Pages: 2
...committed Soldiers to protect our freedoms and uphold democracy. This force consists of Active Duty Soldiers and Soldiers in the Army Reserve. (US Army) Many families struggle with the decision to enlist Army Reserve or Active Duty. Evaluating your current living situation can help in the final decision. Army Reserve allows you to serve your country while still having a civilian life. I believe Army Reserve is a better choice for someone with a family, despite the limited benefits, because it allows personal choice of living, more time with loved ones, and provides benefits. The Army Reserve allows soldiers more flexibility in making living decisions. The Army Reserve is stationed at home unless called to active duty. The Army Reserve makes up a significant portion of the Army. One of the positive factors about the Army Reserve is the ability to live a civilian family life in their local hometown. The soldiers also have the option of living on or off base. Being able to remain in their local hometown, the Army Reserve soldiers can hold full-time civilian jobs. A civilian job helps the soldiers strengthen their technical skills that are also taught in the Army. The flexibility makes it easier to rely on the Army Reserve to meet complex demands for the future at home. Its Citizen- Soldiers embody the warrior mindset and spirit and are essential to the Army`s ability to support the Joint Force, both in contingent and combat-effects missions. When active duty Soldiers deploy overseas...
Words: 1016 - Pages: 5
...“Stop-loss is a policy that permit the military, during times of war, to “halt voluntary separations and retirements” and redeploy soldiers for additional tours of active duty once their initial terms of enlistment are through” (army wife, 2008 para 1). When using Ethos or her creditability she places herself in the blog she gives very fine examples of what she has been through. This gives us some feeling on someone who goes through this very situation. She explains how she was in the same situation and also what she knows about the stop-loss policy. Pathos her emotions or feelings on this subject are also very well noticed especially when using words like whole-heartedly and where she states she does not feel sorry for the others that are being stop-loosed because this will get her husband home sooner. Logos it really draws you into her feelings. It really makes you put yourself in her shoes and actually feel what she going though personally and, understand why she feels this stop-loss policy is very much fair. When using Ethos, Pathos, and Logos she used all three well enough to persuasive the reader. The army wife husband was stop-lossed the day her husband took command of his unit it was agreed that he would not leave until after the deployment. “The deployment has been pushed back 3 times now and so he remains with his unit” (army wife, 2008 para 14). This is where he remains until the people in charge over him saids otherwise. “However, as most military families will...
Words: 1030 - Pages: 5
...United Soldiers of America’s Vision Statement The purpose of the United Soldiers of America (USA) is to provide outstanding assistance to military veterans and their families regardless of race, religion, gender, or ethnicity. Aid is provided to all veterans regardless of when they were in the military. We are committed to providing service with the dignity and respect deserved by all mankind. After the Vietnam War many veterans were forgotten about and had a hard time readjusting to civilian life. They also had a great many mental issues along with drug addiction. The hope of the United Soldiers of America is that we can provide better care for the Soldiers who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan. Five years from now, United Soldiers of America will be one of the largest Non-Profit Organizations dedicated to providing outstanding assistance to Veterans. We will accomplish this vision by expanding our services and focusing on not only the physical needs of veterans and their families, but on the mental needs. Sometimes the emotional damage from being in combat is more harmful than the visible wounds. USA currently provides assistance to veterans and their families in Texas, Washington, and New York. Within the next five years we will focus on opening and another four service centers. The locations currently being considered are California, Georgia, Washington State, and Virginia. In order to accomplish this we will need to focus on advertising, recruitment for...
Words: 603 - Pages: 3
...serves for there country in the U.S Army. The American soldier goes out of there way and risk’s he or she’s not a hero then I’m not sure what is because risking your life for other people’s protection sounds like a hero to me. One thing that is absolutely required to be in the U.S Army is bravery. Knowing that your career requires you going over sea’s from time to time and the risk that you just might not end up coming back. That all would require bravery at the most. The average soldier goes on about three tours every 10 years. My dad has been in the army for exactly 16 going on 17 years and has gone over seas 5 times, also will be going once again in February of 2010. He had served in Bosnia in 1996 thru 1997 also in Iraq from 2003 to 2004. The third place he served was Afghanistan from 2005 to 2006 and also Afghanistan from 2006 to 2007. Being a soldier comes with responsibilities such as being sent overseas. When being sent overseas a lot can occur from tragedies to blessings. My dad had made a comment in the interview I did with the Hero’s Project that “Every day you wake up is a blessing wile your at war, whether you’re in throbbing pain of dehydrated from the horrid heat”. A lot of things happen to the soldiers over war. My dad has come home with story after story. He has gotten to injury overseas. He received the Purple Heart for both as well. The first incident occurred while him and two other soldiers were returning to their base camp & got struck by...
Words: 722 - Pages: 3
...put a heavy strain on the family of a soldier. This is more common to the young and first time service members in mission areas, who have not been away from their families for longer period of time. There is always fear of unknown to both deployed soldier and the family being left behind. Therefore a strategy should be in place to check the foreseen stress and strain to both the soldiers and their families. The newly married soldiers in long deployment mission and multiple deployments have had their own experiences with uncertain outlook on the future, separation, divorce become common among such soldiers; this...
Words: 813 - Pages: 4
...Image of the United States Military in the Public Eye The United States military has had its ups and downs in popularity with the American public. In World War II, America couldn’t get enough of its soldiers, marines, sailors and airmen. However, during Vietnam, the American public equated its soldiers with the government and the unpopular war. Soldiers were treated with disrespect when they came home, and they were called things such as “baby killers”. Ironically, many of the soldiers during that era were drafted and did not support the war either, but the general public didn’t seem to care. Today, I think the public is back to the days of World War II in terms of support for its troops. This support is shown in many different ways, but I would like to focus on just three visual aspects: symbols, images, and cartoons. The first approach I would like to explore is the use of signs and symbols. According to Berger (2008), “a sign … is anything that stands for something else” (p. 49). He then goes on to explain the three different types of signs: icons, indexes, and symbols. Berger (2008) defines a symbol is something that conventionally means what it represents. There is no logical connection; you must learn the meaning. Several examples include Christianity’s cross, and the Jewish symbol of the Star of David. Automatically the first symbol that comes to mind that shows support for American troops is the yellow ribbon. This symbol can be found on bumper stickers...
Words: 1801 - Pages: 8
...THE ARMED CHILDREN DO? It's about 300.000 child soldiers around the world, we can't find a exact number, cause they who kidnapp or tricks the children into being one doesn't really want us to know, so there can be more children that needs help from us than we know about. The definition of a child soldier is "People under 18 who join in any form of legal or illegal armed group. You do not have to wear uniforms or weapons to be a child soldier, cause you can also be given the task to stand for the cooking. So I don't think that people really know what being a child soldier is, cause it's much more than only shooting. 40% of the child soldiers are girls. Girls are a forgotten group among child soldiers. They do many of the same duties as boys, but they also get forced to be sex slaves, maids and can be married against their will. WHAT HAPPENS TO THEM WHO GET SAVED? After the conflict is over earlier child soldiers need help to deal with the cruel actions and their experiences. This is called rehabilitation. Common responses of child soldiers are nightmares, anxiety attacks and guilt. Many child soldiers have also been addicted to alcohol or drugs which they have received from their leaders. They need help to get rid of the addiction. Education is also an important part of rehabilitation. Girls rarely get access to rehabilitation because many of those responsible for rehabilitation not counting them as child soldiers. Girls are also more difficult to remove from the...
Words: 432 - Pages: 2
...military service is shown as a sacrifice for both families and servicemen and women; however, the sacrifice is more emotional for families and more physical for the soldiers. Serviceman and women make physical sacrifices, but due to their distractions emotional pain is not the immediate sacrifice. In “Carrier,” all the sailors have a new setting like the ship or sitting in a plane. The setting requires a lot of work and provides minimal time to feel the absence of family members. Similarly, in the novel, Shooting the Moon, T.J., the brother who serves in Vietnam, is fascinated and immersed in a new...
Words: 441 - Pages: 2
...ENG215 Caroline Lusk Full-length Article – Final Fanning the Home Fires: Raising Awareness and Caring for military kids & families During my husband’s career, my family and I have visited several military installations: Camp Shelby, Mississippi, Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania, and Fort Dix, New Jersey to name a few. If you have never visited an Army base, it’s quite an experience. In some respects, it’s not much different than many middle-income towns in America, but in other ways, it’s very different. The people you meet there feel like family somehow. They, like you, are aware that if you are on the base, shopping or in the grocery store that it’s likely you or someone in your family may be faced with the same uncertain but inevitable struggle; coping with the deployment of a family member. Education, teaching coping strategies and connecting families and service personnel to the available resource has been a top initiative of the US Armed Forces in the past 5 years. With the increased dependency upon Reserve and National Guard components to supplement force strength, an unprecedented burden has been placed on the American family. For those individuals who are actively serving as a part-time soldier, deployments mean separation, family hardship and leaving their ordinary everyday lives to serve their Country. In my case, my husband Mark serves as a Sergeant in the Pennsylvania National Guard as a tank commander. He has been...
Words: 2150 - Pages: 9
...brutality of war continues to affect generations of soldiers. The horrors war can cause are timeless. Remarque shows this by writing about how war causes suffering not only towards the family of soldiers, but to soldiers themselves. He describes how when back home after the war, soldiers feel out of place. He also talks about how war brings out the worst in people and how it affects the mental/emotional health of soldiers. The lives of sons, daughters, parents and friends are lost for the purpose of what? War. The effects these losses can cause are seen when Maria Remarque states, “I must go and see Kemmerich's mother. I cannot write that down. This quaking, sobbing woman who shakes me and cries out on me: "Why are you living then, when he is dead?"--who drowns me in tears and calls out: "What are you there for at all, child, when you --"--who drops into a chair and wails: "Did you see him?...
Words: 1076 - Pages: 5
