Ms. Leo’s Short Story Questions for Period 3 25 April 2011
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Period 3
1. Discuss “the will to survive”, explaining how this theme fits with (a) “The Last Leaf” and (b) “Soldier’s Home”.
Include the “who, where, and why” aspects of each story.
2. The author of “Soldier’s Home”, Ernest Hemingway, places the protagonist in the World War I time frame.
Would this story and its conflicts be effective if they were set in a different wartime . . . World War II, the Korean Conflict, Viet Nam, the Gulf Wars, to name a few? Explain.
Why might be one very good reason why Krebs would not now want ‘intimate’ involvement with a girl? Explain your theory. Remember what Krebs said about girls. Does his mother have any effect on this mindset?
JHS Library Media Center Blog 
1/In the short story “The Last Leaf,” Johnsy doesn’t have the will to survive, but it is still a major theme of the story. Indeed, her friends have the will to survive for her, they want her to outlive the sickness. Therefore it is an important part of the story. In the short story “Soldier’s Home,” Krebs has already survived the war, but now he does not think that he fits in his world anymore. However, he must try to adapt to his changing civilization to be able to live a fresh life.
2/ The story of “Soldier’s Home” would have worked with any war, as long as the soldier coming back from the conflict has seen the atrocities of the war, then he must have mind problems, such as with the American soldiers that fought in Vietnam, and came back wondering if they really had to kill all those people. However it might be easier to re-adapt now that soldiers can talk with their families live, via the internet and webcam.
3/I think that Krebs does not want any relationship because he needs time to recover from what he has seen and done, and maybe that trying to get a girl is not at all what he has in mind, for he is sick of life in general. If this is a possibility, then his mother’s behavior must be most annoying.
1.The will to survive fits in “The Last Leaf” when Johnsy held on, to continue her dream of being an artist, and Mr.Behrman wanted her to live so she could do more than he could. The will to survive in “Soldier’s Home” was with Krebs, who came out of the war safe, but didn’t know how to continue on with his life after all the change.
2. I don’t think the setting of the war would have effected a different outcome, because Krebs would still be confused with what to do with his life after war; maybe a different setting could have made different situations that may have made the war easier or harder on him. I think after everything Krebs went through during the war, it is still on his mind, which may get in the way of his holding a relationship, which is why he may want an easy relationship. I think his mother may have put slight pressure on him, since she mentioned that only certain girls would be allowed in his father’s car, which makes finding a relationship harder for Krebs.
The theme of “The Last Leaf” and “Soldiers Home” fits with ‘the will to survive’ – because both characters were risking their lives. Krebs was fighting the war, when he could have been killed any time. Johnsy was diagnosed with pneumonia, and she was deathly ill. Johnsy’s will to live was the painting of the leaf on the wall. Behrman painted it so she would assume she was going to live, because the leaf never fell. Krebs’ will to live was his home. His family kept him going and supported him.
I think that any war would have held the same conflicts, because he is still fighting for his life and wanting to “come home”.
Krebs might not want any “intimate” relationship with a girl because he said the girls in Germany were not attractive. He also didn’t want to have to work hard to get a girl.
the theme the ‘will to survive’ fits “The Last Leaf” and “Soldier’s Home” because both of the main characters had their lives at risk or in danger.
Krebs fought in the war and took the risk of being killed at anytime during his service.
Johnsy came down with pneumonia and became deathly ill.
Johnsy’s will to live came from the painting on the wall. Behrman painted it on the wall so that it wouldn’t be a leafless vine.
Krebs will to survive during the war was his will to come home; his family is keeping him going and re-adjusting to life away from all the fighting and the war.
I think that the conflict would be the same no matter what war he participated in. Either way he would have to have a will to survive and come home to his family.
Krebs wouldn’t want intimate involvement with a girl in Germany because he would have to leave her when he returns home.
Krebs also doesn’t want to get close to a girl because he doesn’t want to have to support her.
1.The will to survive fits as a theme for “The Last Leaf” and “Soldiers Home”, because in “The Last Leaf”, Johnsy had a bad case of Pneumonia and she was always saying that when the last leaf falls she will die. It didn’t fall, so she got the will to live. In “Soldiers Home” the will to survive fits because Kerbs survived World War II and still had the will to live back home and deal with the changes at home.
2. I think it would be different if it was a different wartime, because he would maybe think it was it right to kill all those people.
3. A reason why Krebs might not want to be intimate with girls is because he’s used to girls overseas that would be with him and he would not have any trouble asking them.
1. The “will to survive” theme is both in “The Last Leaf” and “Soldier’s Home”. This theme fits with both stories. In “The Last Leaf” this theme fits by how the old man wanted Johnsy to survive; the painted leaf gave Johnsy the “will to survive.” In “Soldier’s Home” the “will to survive” fits the theme by showing that after going to the war and seeing all he saw, he still came home and lived his life how he wanted to live it.
2. If “Soldier’s Home” was based on a different war, would it be different? I believe a different war would have made him different, because if he were in a different war he would have seen different things that would have affected him.
Why I believe Krebs doesn’t want a girl is because his mother is telling him what kind of girl to bring home. I also believe that he might have had a lover when he was in the war. I believe this woman was a German girl, and by his falling for this girl, he doesn’t want anything to do with American girls – he cant feel the same way as he did before.
Ashley, Krebs brought up the fact that he didn’t have anything to do with German girls because he thought they were not attractive.
1. A The “will to survive” in “The Last Leaf” was when the downstairs neighbor painted the last leaf on the building, giving Laura the motivation to fight off the pneumonia, instead of giving up.
B.In “Soldier’s Home” Krebs “will to survive” was that he had a sister to keep him going – that “welcome home” wasn’t needed because Helen, his favorite sister, influenced him with the laid back happy attitude, although he was in post war shock and depression.
2. 1)Yes, I do think that this story could go for other wars; it doesn’t matter what war – any young man could have conflicts with life, or their mind, as could any girl coming home from such a tragic event.
2) Krebs doesn’t feel comfortable with an involvement in an “intimate” relationship with a girl because he still isn’t comfortable with the post-war Krebs yet; yes, for coming home, his mom is giving him a bad example of what a relationship could be like with a girl, and its just making him disinterested.
1) the theme fits with “The Last Leaf” because Johnsy would live ’til the last leaf fell, and it never fell, so she got better. then the theme fits with “Soldiers Home” because Krebs is dealing with the stuff that’s going on at the house with his mom being on his case right when he gets home, and telling him what he can do and can not do.
2) I don’t think the story could take place at any other war. People act differently after they’re done fighting for whatever they fought for. so I think most stuff would be different.
I don’t think Krebs would want a relationship, because he probably doesn’t want to go through the process. And I think his mom might have an affect on it because she wants him to go after the nice girls and not the so called bad ones. And maybe he’s just afraid to pick the right girl.
1. The “will to survive” is a common theme in the stories of the “Last Leaf” and “Soldier’s Home”. In the “Last Leaf” the woman, Johnsy, was sick and had no hope to try to fight the pneumonia. She did not care to live for herself or for Susan, but cared about the fate of the last leaf on the vine. In the “Soldiers Home” you see that Krebs does not have the “will to survive” because he does not keep up his social life. He has no job when he comes back home from the war and doesn’t care to have one. He also doesn’t talk to girls or anyone, but just stays home and does nothing. The desire for him to survive was most likely his little sister.
2. In the story the “Soldier’s Home” Krebs was put in the time frame in the World War I and fought in it. I believe that if he was in any other war he would have had the same conflicts. I believe that his problem was Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. All the wars had effects on the soldiers in some ways, and I believe for Krebs that he had that, and back then there was no one to help him with that.
3. I believe that Krebs would not want to be in an intimate relationship because of the kinds of girls that he likes. He likes the German girls because he didn’t have to be social with them and could just get with them. But the American girls are more involved with long relationships, and he does not want to do that. His mother is also picky about what girls that Krebs should be with, such as “nice girls”
A) “The will to survive” can compare to the short story The Last Leaf because Johnsy had pneumonia and she had to fight for her life; during this time period there was no medicine to help deal with an illness like this. Johnsy’s best friend Sue was trying to help her keep her mind off of the leaves falling off the tree because Johnsy was waiting for it to fall so she could pass away.
B) “Soldier’s Home” can compare to “the will to survive” because Krebs is having a hard time finding a girlfriend. He doesn’t seem to like the American girls as much as the German girls. He has a hard time finding the the perfect girl but he can be very judgmental.
2) In my opinion I don’t think that it matters which war he was in, because either way he would be fighting and he could be traumatized either way. War is War, and there are always going to be problems that they are going to face after the war is over.