Examples Of Nonconformism In Soldiers Home
Yianna Farley
Dr. Cohen
Lit. 3325
October 15, 2012
Life Is Easy When You Are a Child Ralph Waldo Emerson argues that “Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist.” In Hemingway’s “Soldiers Home,” we learn of a struggle between Krebs and his small, hometown people. The lies that the townspeople want to hear and the truth that Krebs is attempting to pursue, keep him from conforming to society. Krebs’s lie about the war is his first attempt to fit into the norm, but soon after lying, he begins to believe the lies himself and is sicken by them (Hemingway 69). The lying begins to take a toll on Krebs. Krebs’s inability to fit in and being an outcast creates conflict. The conflict begins to show how he does not belong to society due to his inability to lie and the demands of his townspeople. In “Soldiers Home” the main character Krebs’ inability to lie and conform to society, leads him to become an outcast in his hometown and remain a …show more content…
To build a relationship, one must talk and interact. Krebs feels like women and relationships are “too complicated,” and he does not want to “have to work” to get a girl (Hemingway 71). Since building a relationship will require discussing the truth about the war and his experiences, Krebs refuses to build relationships, and that forces him to become an outsider. His main focus is that “he [doesn’t] want to tell any more lies” (Hemingway 71). To Krebs, women represent growing up because that would force Krebs to be a man and risk being rejected because of the truth. Lying is complicated and child-like just as women are complicated. Life is much simpler as a child. To build a relationship would mean that Krebs has to become a man. Part of being a man involves sharing his experiences of war and that is complicated as well. By ignoring women and refusing to build relationships, he can remain as a child and not have
Dr. Cohen
Lit. 3325
October 15, 2012
Life Is Easy When You Are a Child Ralph Waldo Emerson argues that “Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist.” In Hemingway’s “Soldiers Home,” we learn of a struggle between Krebs and his small, hometown people. The lies that the townspeople want to hear and the truth that Krebs is attempting to pursue, keep him from conforming to society. Krebs’s lie about the war is his first attempt to fit into the norm, but soon after lying, he begins to believe the lies himself and is sicken by them (Hemingway 69). The lying begins to take a toll on Krebs. Krebs’s inability to fit in and being an outcast creates conflict. The conflict begins to show how he does not belong to society due to his inability to lie and the demands of his townspeople. In “Soldiers Home” the main character Krebs’ inability to lie and conform to society, leads him to become an outcast in his hometown and remain a …show more content…
To build a relationship, one must talk and interact. Krebs feels like women and relationships are “too complicated,” and he does not want to “have to work” to get a girl (Hemingway 71). Since building a relationship will require discussing the truth about the war and his experiences, Krebs refuses to build relationships, and that forces him to become an outsider. His main focus is that “he [doesn’t] want to tell any more lies” (Hemingway 71). To Krebs, women represent growing up because that would force Krebs to be a man and risk being rejected because of the truth. Lying is complicated and child-like just as women are complicated. Life is much simpler as a child. To build a relationship would mean that Krebs has to become a man. Part of being a man involves sharing his experiences of war and that is complicated as well. By ignoring women and refusing to build relationships, he can remain as a child and not have