Why was Lucius so reluctant to return to the comforts of Vienna, and why did he reenlist when he didn’t need to?

Why do you suppose Lucius was so reluctant to return to the comforts of Vienna, and why did he reenlist when he didn’t need to?

I believe he did not feel valued by his family and he was uncomfortable with their very materialistic values. Reenlisting got him back to a place and a job where he felt useful.

Lucius was never comfortable as a wealthy son. He early on saw the useless way of life he was born into. Heenjoyed the academic study of medicine, but finally found a reason to live as a practicing physician. He clearly understood the distinction between a meaningful life and just surviving. He never wanted to just “eat, drink and be merry”. He wanted to help others and to have trus life experiences even if they were sometimes hardships.

Medicine was his life. At that time it was a way for him to continue practicing medicine even though he had not finished Med School. As soon as the notice comes that he can no longer work as a doctor but will have to go back to school, that is when he takes off to look for Margarete.

I think he felt there was more to do in caring for the wounded and he had nothing to go home for..

Lucius never felt loved or accepted by his parents. He didn't fit the "mold" they wanted him to conform to. He was always uncomfortable with their wealth and felt that it set him apart from others. He reenlisted because he felt good about serving the men and it was a learning experience. But, the biggest underlying reason he reenlisted was Margaurite. Could he find her?

Not only was he uncomfortable with his life in his home in Vienna due to the wealth, but he also would have to endure a father obsessed with his war accomplishments and a manipulative mother controlling his destiny. His medical life gave him a retreat from all this and made him feel valued in his own right. Most of all he was obsessed with finding Margaret.

I think he viewed his former life as pretentious and shallow. He did not feel valued or useful. In the army he felt he was providing a service, was valued and appreciated. He also was trying to get connected to Margarret

After his intense experiences during war, where his days had value and purpose, he saw returning to his former life in Vienna as devoid of meaning. Also staying in the army would allow him to search for Margarete which was compelling for him.

I agree with the above comments, but I'm also looking at parallels with today's soldiers. I think this kind of experience changes you dramatically, and that it becomes very difficult to go back to the life you once had, even if it seemed good at the time. The people around you simply don't understand what you've been through, even if they, too, have been to war. So I think Lucius never really did fit in, but that was even more apparent after his experiences.

I agree with all of the above responses. He needed to feel valued, which he didn't at home, and he had very much grown into being a doctor, and at the same time he knew that he didn't know everything. He wanted to keep learning, and keep feeling useful.

I think he felt he didn't deserve the comfort. He had constant nightmares about Horvath, didn't know what had happened to him and thought he could not live a life of comfort given what he had seen and done. He may have also believed that by reenlisting he would have a better chance of finding Margarete believing that she would have continued what she had been doing when they were together.

Some really good answers here - another consideration for Lucius's reenlistment is that the war and treating patients was a life he knew and was relatively good at. Vienna with its refinements and parental expectations was not a life he was good at. It seemed natural that he would go back to the "easier" choice.
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I agree with the other readers that he never felt "at home" at his home. His parents did not accept him, he did not want the life of privilege, and he always felt very lonely when he was there. His medicine and the war gave him a sense of belonging and purpose in life. AND, he was desperately seeking Margarete!

He had nothing to go home to....His mother didn't want/need him. In Vienna his love of medicine didn't have any value. Why would he go home if he could stay somewhere that he had an impact.