The saying “Existence precedes essence” is the slogan of existentialism. This element of existentialism is displayed throughout the short story “Soldier's Home” by Ernest Hemingway. Among the various elements of existentialism, existence precedes essence is most evident in "Soldier's Home." Harold Krebs was a World War I soldier who returned a few months later than the rest of the men in his town. He was forced to lie about his war experiences in order to get along and fit in with the people of his town. “His lies were quite unimportant lies, and consisted of attributing to himself things which other men had seen, done, or heard, and of stating as facts certain apocryphal incidents familiar to all soldiers” (Hemingway 654) . Even though the lies didn't really matter in the grand scheme of things, they did have an impact on Krebs. Krebs' lies changed him and devalued his true war experiences. Krebs knew that if he continued to lie, he would no longer be true to himself. "In 'Soldier's Home,' Hemingway uses conflict to show how society demands conformity and unjust struggle...