The experience of war irreparably wounds the soul of the soldier.
This aphorism can apply to Krebs in "Soldier's Home" because he is no longer the same person he was before he left for the war. Krebs feels alienated from others, and he develops a distaste for talking about the war because he finds that he has to lie about his experiences for anyone to listen to him. Also, although he has changed,
[N]othing was...
The experience of war irreparably wounds the soul of the soldier.
This aphorism can apply to Krebs in "Soldier's Home" because he is no longer the same person he was before he left for the war. Krebs feels alienated from others, and he develops a distaste for talking about the war because he finds that he has to lie about his experiences for anyone to listen to him. Also, although he has changed,
[N]othing was changed in the town except that the young girls had grown up....When he was in town their appeal to him was not very strong. He did not like them when he saw them in the Greek's ice cream parlor. He did not want them themselves really. They were too complicated.
Krebs feels the world in which he has lived is not the same world as that of the town in Oklahoma to which he returns. He has no interest in forming relationships, nor does he wish to become involved in any politics.
Because "[H]e did not want to tell any more lies," he tries to keep his life from becoming complicated. But, when his mother enters his room one day and talks with him about mundane things and God's plan for him, Krebs realizes that he cannot live at home. His mother and father believe him to be the same son as the one who left for war. They do not realize that Harold Krebs has wounds they cannot see, and he has not healed from them. Krebs has wanted his life to go "smoothly," but it has now become complicated instead. So, Krebs decides to leave home and go to Kansas City to get a job.
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