Personal Response- “Soilders Home”

“Soldiers Home” by Ernest Hemingway was quite similar to all the other readings we have gone through in class. For example, some of the poems we have gone through in class talk about soldiers returning from war and feeling alienated when talking to civilians who didn’t truly experience fighting or the trauma that came with it, which is what “Soldiers Home” focuses on. The poem mentions that Krebs returned later than the other soldiers, so the greeting of heroes was over (I.8). Nobody cared about Krebs’ stories, which was fine at first since he didn’t want to talk about the war and his experiences, but as time went on, he started to feel the need to talk about it, yet nobody would listen; their attention would wander, losing interest quickly. He decided to lie about his experience to gain attention, wanting people to listen to what he had to say. This part stood out to me. I found it interesting how Krebs decides to lie, wanting a reaction from civilians who had by then heard multiple different stories about war. Krebs, as a character, stood out to me as well. I wasn’t quite sure how to feel about him. I felt bad for him, of course, but at some points, he confused me. An example is when he said he wants a girl, but doesn’t want to talk to them or go through the trouble of “chasing after them,” finding that whole process to be too complicated. I understood this partially; he didn’t want to be confused, didn’t want complications, but always admired them when they walked by. He did not want any form of responsibility and didn’t want to lie because, in his words, it “wasn’t worth it” (II.63). The specific part that gave me doubts about his character was when he mentioned not wanting any connections, even going as far as saying he didn’t love his own mother. I found this part to be interesting. I tried to understand where he was coming from, but I couldn’t. Yes, he had been through lots during the war, but what would that have to do with not loving your own mother? Perhaps it was because he did not want to lose her, almost as if war taught him that you can lose everything within seconds, which made him hesitant to come back and make those connections once again. When he came back from war, sure, he was home, but it didn’t feel like home anymore, which links to the title because while he was physically home, he mentally didn’t feel at home. Overall, I really enjoyed this poem and found it interesting to read since there are so many different ways you can interpret Krebs as a character. I would definitely read this again, and I think it has been one of my favourite readings from this unit.