The story has different elements that make it a story, that make it a whole. The frame is one of these elements. The book defines setting as “the context in which the action of the story takes place” (131). After reading "Soldier's Home" by Ernest Hemmingway, the setting played a very important role in this story. A different setting could possibly change the outcome or mood of the story and here are some reasons why. First, if the setting mattered, what would this story be like? Would Kreb's still be in Paris or Germany? Would he have come home sooner if he had known it was a busier town? Hemmingway made a point of setting this story in a slow Oklahoma town that had no chance of improving. Krebs came from a Methodist college and went straight to war (133). Krebs knew the lifestyle he had left behind and what would be expected of him when he returned. His family expected a return to his pre-war self, that of a young man out of university. The Oklahoma setting probably no longer appealed to Krebs and he craved something better than settling down and becoming a working man. New York or even Los Angeles could have created a different setting for Kreb's. Perhaps these cities could have offered a more exciting lifestyle for this young man. Hemmingway may be trying to show that Kreb's was held back by the consequences of the war and that this Oklahoma town would again have consequences for Kreb's. Were marriage, children, and a steady job the consequences Kreb was talking about when he talked about wooing the women of this town? Maybe, and he knew he wasn't going to live a lie anymore. Second, what is the mood of this story that he is trying to portray with the setting. The setting is in the middle of the paper... as giving details of the location” (Benoît). Carol even explains something interesting: “The type of vocabulary the characters use can suggest where they live or where the scene is taking place. Teenagers in Chicago will sound different from teenagers in rural Kentucky” (Benedict). This is why it was important for Hemmingway to show the reader how Krebs felt. He set the story and it was the reader's choice to imagine how the character felt about his return. Works Cited Benedict, Carol. “Elements of the story: importance of setting.” last edited April 13, 2010, http://thewritingplace.wordpress.com/2010/04/13/storyelements-importance-of-the-setting/ Hemmingway, Ernest “Soldier’s Home.” , MA: Bedford/St. Martins, 2011. 133-38. Meyer, Michael. “Setting to Go” Boston, MA: Bedford/St Martins., 2011. 131.