Well, I don't know if the word "hero" is entirely
accurate. When we think of the fiction of Hemmingway we see he is actually very adept at
creating protagonists that are more accurately described as "antiheroes" than heroes.
Antiheroes are characters that sharply contrast with the general idea that we have in
our minds concerning heroes and what they should be, do and look like. Antiheroes are
characterised by inertia, disillusionment and
hopelessness.
Clearly, when we begin to think about the
character of Krebs in this excellent story describing the disillusionment that so many
soldiers experienced following the First World War, he is a character that resists
engagement in life in every way. Now that he is back in his home town, he lives his life
getting up late, reading and playing pool. Although he obviously likes girls and would
want to have one, the thought of the necessary "intrigue and politics" and "courting"
that is a requirement to get a girl scares him away. He is a character that avoids
commitment in every way possible:
He did not want any consequences. He did not want
any consequences ever again. He wanted to live along without
consequences.
Note how this
insight into the mind of Krebs reveals just how emotionally exhausted he is and how
desperate he is to avoid any form of commitment. Of course, the traditional hero feels a
strong commitment towards community and embraces responsibility. Krebs, by his
determination to avoid and shirk responsibility, shows himself to be a typical
Hemmingway antihero.
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