Question

Why may the author choose to begin "In Another Country" with: "The people hated us because we were officers, and from a wine-shop someone called out, "A basso gli ufficiali!" as we passed. Another boy who walked with us sometimes and made us five wore a black silk handkerchief across his face because he had no nose then and his face was to be rebuilt".

Answer 1

Answer:

The narrator in the story is an American soldier who has been wounded in a war in Italy during the First World War. His leg is being treated with a new machine.  The narrator appears to be on friendly terms with the major and the three boys. He finds himself even closer to a young boy who has lost his nose during the war. They lead a secluded life and go to the hospital every day. They are cut off from the world of war and soldiers and also from their families