Caught between his desire to have a simpler life, Krebs ends up descending into a self-induced paralysis. He feels unable to be part of the society that he now finds himself in. Hemingway’s point of view of Krebs is more as an observer of the moment, rather than an actual participant. The main character, Krebs, is always observing, but rarely interacting. At a certain point of the story, he wants a girl, but does not want to deal with the consequences. Hemingway argues; "He did not want any consequences ever again. He wanted to live along without consequences"(349). Krebs constantly shows the nonconformity of a human.
He experiences the conflict in respect at the rules that the town imposes, where it is dictated that he should court a girl and get married, and thus settle down. However, he does not believe this to be true, and therefore he does not accept the fact that a man needs a woman to survive at all.
To go deeper into Krebs’ behavior, it is essential to view the style in which the story is written. Hemingway’s writing style is flat and lifeless, with a large quantity of negative connotation. The narrative voice is used for support to the story facts only, and therefore it lends to no depth or any feelings to the story. As a support of this statement, it can be addressed when Hemingway describes the two photographs. There is no mention of any characters in the picture. The narrator argues that the uniforms are too small, but does not express the why, or the who. The voice is used only as a supplier of the facts. The author uses a third person format, in which there is a limited omniscience exposed by the narrator, as we see insights Krebs’ mind, but nobody else’s.
The lack of fanciness or verbosity in the narrator clearly helps to support the dilemma faced by Krebs. This shows that his life is flat, wishing constantly to lie on bed and ignore the world around him. Whenever ‘’life’’ appears to get close to him, he rejects the idea and sulks away. He enjoys the ‘’show’’ that the world contains, but he does not feel as a participant.
The story is related to Hemingway’s experiences, having grown up in a small town in America and experiencing military life. The narration’s lack of involvement, represents the lack of involvement with his family, and life related to the community. Krebs never explores his reality, nor does the narrator expresses detail and exploration with his descriptions. Krebs seems to be slowly going toward and end, but he never seems to reach that point. This aspect of feeling lost, shows how the society has forced Krebs into being something that he did not mean to be, based on his individuality and nonconformity.
It is to argue that Hemingway’s background is much like the one described in the protagonist of his story, and after all it is apparent that ‘’Soldier’s Home’’ is a rough draft of his life.