He was walking along the road
And I asked him, where are you going
And this he told me
I'm going on down to Yasgur's farm
I'm going to join in a rock 'n' roll band
I'm going to camp out on the land
I'm going to try an' get my soul free
Still, the "establishment" seemed to have a firm grip on power, and not everything was love and flowers: Nixon was president, the war was escalating, the Manson family was committing their crazed murders, and the killings of six students at Kent and Jackson State Universities by the National Guard was only a few months away. Kurt Vonnegut, nominally a member of the "Greatest Generation" who has served in and survived WWII, might ordinarily be expected to side with the establishment -- and yet, somehow, he found his way to writing what might just possibly be the most powerful anti-war novel ever penned. Although, as one filmmaker remarks to him in the opening section, why not just write an anti-glacier novel?
Unlike, however, most novels written with a similar intent, such as All Quiet on the Western Front, Slaughterhouse-five (named after the meat locker in which Vonnegut and other German POW's were held captive in Dresden) doesn't confront the horror of war head-on. Its main character, Billy Pilgrim, has "come unstuck from time" -- suffering from something like PTSD, but filtered through a Vonnegutian progress. His recuperation in a hospital is aided by the reading of science fiction novels, written by the (fictional) Kilgore Trout (a pun on Vonnegut's friend Theodore Sturgeon). Things get really weird when, on his wedding night, Billy is abducted by the Tralfamadorians, who take him to their distant planet to study humanity; they bring him back to earth, but return periodically to study humanity some more. In the midst of this chronological scramble, we finally get 'round to seeing the core of Billy's wartime trauma, and the fire-bombing of Dresden. Dresden, a city already crowded with refugees from other fronts of the war, was relentlessly firebombed by the RAF with incendiaries intended to create a firestorm -- and they did. More than 25,000 people were killed, one of the worst single-event civilian casualty counts this side of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Vonnegut's book was playful -- but it was also deadly serious; its influence has reverberated through the years, and was recently celebrated by novelist Salman Rushdie. There are still wars, and still warmongers, still those who believe that military might alone can tame the demons of civilization. Or maybe they are the demons.
And so it goes.
ReplyDeleteThe book slaughterhouse-Five is published in the third-person point of view, with interruptions from a first-person storyteller who appears to be Kurt Vonnegut, the writer. An omniscient narrator has a godlike viewpoint and is knowledgeable of all of the characters' thoughts and emotions. Vonnegut & O'Hare struggle to recall precisely what happened in Dresden during the war in the novel's "frame tale," or story that presents another story. This first chapter establishes a key characteristic of the novel: irony, or the gap between what the characters desire and what actually unfolds. The Vietnam War, which is still raging as Vonnegut published the novel, undermines the cab driver's desire for peace.
So, I started reading the book shortly after I finished reading the wizards of oz cause it was clearly next on the syllabus. This book was not at all what I expected. Personally, I don’t really find the book very interesting at all. Although, reading this book has made the topic of war something that I haven’t experienced, seem so much more understandable and eye -opening. I am only a couple chapters deep in the book but I am so very tempted to call it insufferable. The themes of time and mortality are all interesting in how the author has framed all that is happening and what will continue to happen. I am very very curious to keep reading to see if it will catch my interests but I have many doubts. It’s just not the type of book I would read in my free time. To be fair though, this was written and published in the late 60’s so I am sure that back then it was very impressive and a groundbreaking book. I am just not very drawn to it.
Mckenzie Desimas
ReplyDeleteBefore this class I never got the chance to read Slaughterhouse-Five. I know the novel is usually read in high school but it was never brought up until college. Reading this book shines a new light on the topic of war and the personal perspective of a person before and after it all. Historical topics and history itself never really interested me because of the education I grew up having. This book makes an historical topic interesting to the point I want to keep reading. Usually this isn’t the type of book I would read; the parts where Billy becomes a prisoner along with other Americans is a bit of a scary turn of events and that isn’t something I typically want to read. Although, there are many elements in this book that a reader would enjoy like satire, some humor, and social criticism. I also learned through some research that the author Kurt Vonnegut has his own museum in his state of birth. The museum includes some things like doodles created by him, the typewriter he wrote various books on, and images donated by family members that depict the way he lived happily in life.
A thoughtful comment! I do get the sense that, for you and many others in the class, the way history (as a subject) was presented must have made it seem dull, a matter of dates and names to memorize. I'm glad that the novel has started to change that for you! -- and I hadn't known there was a Vonnegut Museum. I must visit it some day. I see they're planning quite a celebration for his 100th birthday next year!
DeleteSo far I don't really like this book. It is confusing me and I just cant click with the story. I couldn’t picture it because it was just weird and talked too much about history. It basically felt like I was reading a history textbook. The book isn’t really what I generally like. I expected it to be about the war and how terrible it was. Then it started talking about Billy time traveling back and fourth from when he was in the war and other parts of his life, and how he meet aliens and it just confused me even more. Im interested to see if anything else out of the ordinary is going to happen in this book but so far it seems more like a sci fi book than a book about the war.
ReplyDeleteKarina Nunez
ReplyDeleteIt was very difficult to stay engaged to this book. just like everyone else I thought it was going to be about the war and some part of history but reading the first few chapters it wasn't what I expected. The book started getting a little strange once Billy was mentioning this place, he claims he has been to, and my first immediate thought was that he was traumatized from being a POW and the helicopter accident he was in. It very much could be the case, but he strongly believes things that are out of the ordinary. I agree with his daughter when she mentions he could have dementia and considering his state of being I don’t think he should live alone. I’m hoping that the book does get interesting, and it takes a turn of event but will see.
Breanna Jones
ReplyDeleteKurt Vonnegut has a very intricate way of writing. I don't know if he purposely writes as though he does not know how to accumulate his thoughts or he does. He seems to trail off, rant and not make sense. However, this can all be intentional to the character of Billy Pilgrim. I have to agree with some of these other comments. It is a little dry during the beginning. I also feel like we are told a lot in a little bit of time. This form of storytelling can be hard to read sometimes. I may change my mind by the end of the story because more often than not, middle and ends of stories are much more exciting than the beginning.
Olivia Bradstreet
ReplyDeleteI had never heard of Slaughterhouse-five before this class. Therefore, I am glad I now have had the chance to read part of it so far, because the author, Kurt Vonnegut, really does a wonderful job at brining light to anti-war and shows how war can deeply affect a person both during and after. I do enjoy this aspect of the novel because it’s always interesting to get different perspectives and views as to how people get through mentally and physically. Not only that, but I like how the illusion of free will is perceived, and how the idea of death is seen to Billy.
Nevertheless, while the idea of the book is great, I personally don’t enjoy it as a reading. I thought it was going to be more focused on the actual war and how that was, as well as touch on other effects of war in a more serious way, rather than a dream-like way Billy is dealing with it being “unstuck from time”. It’s just confusing at some points, and I must go back and re-read the text to try to make sense of what’s happening. I’m hoping, like others, that the book as I read on will get me more engaged and wanting to keep reading.
I would like to agree that I did not reador hear of this book before the class. However, the author captures his idea of the affects of war very well through Billy.
DeleteKendra Roach
ReplyDeletePrior to this class, I had never heard of this book. It’s definitely hard to get into, but I’m also not a heavy reader. I love the author’s repetition of the phrase “so it goes” as if to say “it is what it is” or “life goes on.” It is not to say you get used to death the more you encounter it, but it starts to become dull when the list gets higher and higher. The character’s emotions aren’t at all dull though,only his thought of death.
The author writing the book by writing Billy’s life events sporadically really told a story with just that. We feel Billy’s emotions and when negative events in your life happen over and over, it seems like someone is out to get you. Billy goes through a lot in his life. The jumping back and forth between events shows how Billy felt and what he was going through. Sometimes it starts to get to be too much, especially Billy having been in war. We see that time is a recurring issue for Billy throughout the novel.
I definitely agree with you that the repetition of the phrase "so it goes" is extremely powerful and it really draws attention to how much loss Billy Pilgrim has experienced throughout his lifetime. It makes sense that these memories of grief would infiltrate many aspects of Billy's life and follow him wherever he goes.
Delete- Tess Collins
DeleteChloe Marrapese
ReplyDeleteI decided to take a more present-based view on this novel for this analysis. Slaughterhouse Five is a novel which defies categorization, yet its universal message is clear: war is destructive and dehumanizing, and it must be avoided at all costs. To begin, the protagonist, Billy Pilgrim, is "unstuck in time." He is suffering from PTSD as a result of his experience in Dresden, Germany.It is also a novel humane enough to allow, at the end of the horror that is its subject, for the possibility of hope. Its final passage describes the end of the war and the liberation of the prisoners, who include Billy Pilgrim and Vonnegut himself. “And somewhere in there it was springtime,” Vonnegut writes, and in the last moment of the book, birds, once again, begin to sing. This cheerfulness in spite of everything is Vonnegut’s characteristic note. It may be, as I’ve suggested, a cheerfulness beneath which much pain is hidden. But it is cheerfulness nonetheless. Vonnegut’s prose, even when dealing with the dreadful, whistles a happy tune.
It is also deeply ironic. Beneath the apparent resignation is a sadness for which there are no words. This is the manner of the entire novel, and it has led to the novel being, in many cases, misunderstood. Its reception was largely positive, it has sold an enormous number of copies, the Modern Library ranked it eighteenth on its list of the hundred best English-language novels of the twentieth century, and it is also on a similar list issued by Time magazine. However, there are those who have accused it of the sin of “quietism,” of a resigned acceptance, even, according to Anthony Burgess, an “evasion” of the worst things in the world.
I think that's a good approach! And I like your description of his prose "whistling a happy tune," Rushdie's point notwithstanding.
DeleteBrian Gilbert
DeleteI think the idea of evasion is an interesting one and speaks to something many veterans struggle with which is the arrogance of people who did not live anything close to their experience judging them. And blaming them for things so far outside their control. To me the book really speaks to the idea that in war, on the ground quite often the soldier is consumed with survival and within that the mission. And often to use the vernacular things go FUBAR, it just comes down to survival. Something many of us have no real context to understand. Which for me is why books like this are so important to read and honor there message.
To be completely candid, having heard that Kurt Vonnegut’s “Slaughterhouse-Five” was a classic American anti-war novel, I expected to read something entirely different. I was prepared to examine something analogous to a dissertation about the author’s experience in World War Two and the firebombing of Dresden. I was prepared for an organized text with a clear chronological order, a compelling and concise argument against war, and perhaps a heart wrenching retelling of the events that took place in Dresden. Instead, what I read was a messy and disorganized novel about life and war through the eyes of a disturbed man who is traveling through time while occasionally being abducted by aliens. This was not at all what I imagined this classic would look like.
ReplyDeleteHowever, as strange and chaotic as this story was, I thought it was the most honest reflection that Vonnegut could have possibly written about his experience in the war. Not only did it pose really startling and relevant questions about human behavior, but it also felt like a very truthful glance inside the mind of somebody who has experienced great trauma and loss and is struggling to interpret it. Healing from trauma is not a methodical process and does not follow a clear beginning, middle, and end. It is complicated and all-consuming and can become integrated into every aspect of a person’s life. When the protagonist Billy Pilgrim experienced a day in his optometry office as a wealthy middle-aged man and then flashed back to being a starving, cold, and frightened young man in World War Two, this jolt in time is very characteristic of somebody who has a history of trauma.
In summation, although I did find this book to be unexpected and a little hard to follow, I also found it really raw and authentic. And I thought that there were a lot of meaningful life lessons embedded in it. One of my favorites is from a conversation shared between Billy Pilgrim and the Tralfamadorians when he is first taken in the middle of the night. “Billy licked his lips, thought a while, inquired at last: ‘Why me?’ ‘That is a very Earthling question to ask, Mr. Pilgrim. Why you? Why us for that matter? Why anything? Because the moment simply is. Have you ever seen bugs trapped in amber?’… ‘Well, here we are, Mr. Pilgrim, trapped in the amber of this moment. There is no why.’” (pg. 80)
Sorry, I completely forgot to include my name in my post!
DeleteTess Collins
Before this class, I had never heard of "Slaughterhouse-Five". However, after reading some of it I can the assumption and opinion that the author, Kurt Vonnegut, was very intelligent about the time. With the Vietnam War being such a controversial conflict, I believe he captured the concept well. He depicts that hecticness of the time well in his writing such as the War, the Manson Family murders, and killings at a college by the National Guard. The period had so many events and conspiracy theories that may be aliens were not so unbelievable after all.
ReplyDeleteBilly's PTSD is captured not only within the novel but also in the title. The name "Slaughterhouse-Five" is inspired by the German POW meat lockers that they were held captive in. The reader can see that Billy is still caught up in the war and has a difficult time. He tries to calm his mind by reading science fiction novels in the hospital.
The author can depict the results of war and how it can affect society. This book so far is very intriguing and I am excited to continue reading it!
BreAna Durand
ReplyDeleteWhile starting this book I thought that I would not be able to get into in like I did with The Wizard of Oz. I tend to like fantasy books more than books about war, so it surprised me that I was so drawn into Slaughterhouse five. One thing that I like about this book is that there are time shifts. I like it when authors do this because it breaks the story up and things do not get repetitive. I find the story’s plot interesting. I enjoy reading about Billy and his story. I appreciate Vonnegut’s writing style. The way that Bill is portrayed in the book, having PTSD, really made the book. The way it portrayed his PTSD shows that PTSD can be different for everyone. If the author did not write it in this way, I don’t think that I would have enjoyed it as much as I am.
- Lindsay Nadeau
ReplyDeleteI was very amazed by this film, it was quite unique and action-packed in a sense. What I found most interesting was that Billy developed the ability to "come unstuck in time" and time travel. This was incredibly uplifting for Billy considering he was an optometrist but, after his Tralfamadorian experience Billy actually becomes a preacher and tries to influence others with his experiences and thoughts. It was also such a crazy twist when the Tralfamadorians actually abduct him and study his natures. This was something I was not predicting to happen! Things as traumatizing as war really take a huge toll on many people and it is truly sad. This can take a toll in many different ways, some people similar to Billy suffer by doing things such as hallucinating and can believe they are in different dimensions similar to Billy. This movie/book is not normally my "type" of movie that I would watch when scrolling through looking for something to put on I consider myself more of a comedy or romance genre, but I must say it was quite interesting!
Brian Gilbert
DeleteOne thing to consider about a book like this I think is its value as a raw conversation like you might have with a good trusted friend or even therapist were you hold nothing back. The world and society I feel need that kind of communication more often. So many lessons unlearned for lack of interest in facing them.
Brian Gilbert
ReplyDeleteI loved this book. Too me it is the best of writing in its rawness and exploration of themes not through hand holding your reader but through challenging them with a very personal story told with the intent of messy subjective truth. War as a theme is of course ripe for interpretations and warehouses full of films and movies speak of it. But this book speaks to something we rarely see in cinema or prose; the pointless desperation of war on the ground. War in the minds and hearts of those who do the heavy lifting, the killing and witness the atrocities committed by the other side as well as their own side. Which I think is why it is so often derided, banned and condemned. People shy away from the truth. But when you are in that truth, its not so easy. It reminds me of true accounts I have read about soldiers from WWII, Vietnam and the Gulf Wars. The idea of being unstuck in time to me has interesting shades of PTSD long before it was really taken seriously. Many soldiers come back from wars but in their heads never really leave it. Books like this should be required reading for seniors in high school. I loved the saying "so it goes..." And to quote one of my favorite computer games, War never changes...
Brian Gilbert
ReplyDeleteProfessor I did want to mention the firebombing of Tokyo had a causality count of 80,000 to 100,000 people. And most people consider both Dresden and Tokyo acts of revenge as neither represented much strategic logic as targets. Germany was done but the time we bombed Dresden as was the Imperial Navy.
Much like others in the class, I was also caught a bit off guard by the structure of this book. Yet I also found it to be quite refreshing through Billy’s continuous erratic dance with time travel and his past experiences. I understand how this novel could be hard to follow but this particular aspect I think elucidates precisely what/how things must feel like for someone with PTSD and/or trauma. Imagining myself in Billy’s shoes and thinking about the way I learned about war growing up I realized the beauty behind the way Billy’s character was portrayed. Even with how open Billy was in regards to talking about Tralfamadorians I would say depicts the varying levels of trauma. Some people, like Billy, may overtly display signs of obvious trauma while others may be better at coping and/or hiding what they really feel. In the end, I believe the way this story was told is much more relatable and perhaps that is part of the reason it’s considered a classic anti war novel.
ReplyDeleteI found this book to be a very interesting read. The constant time jumps were a bit jarring, but interesting when you consider that may just be how Billy's mind works. One thing that threw me for a loop, is because Vonnegut writes this from Billy's perspective, there's really no way to know if Billy is making up the alien abduction as a way to cope with the trauma he's faced (which I consider to be the more plausible route), or if he was actually abducted, giving the book a bit of Sci-fi twist. In reality, I think the confusion on this aspect was a part of what the author intended. To try and give a glimpse into the mind of someone who was put through hell and left to find a way to reason it all. It really stuck out to me when Vonnegut would throw himself into the accounts of Billy's story. I felt like that was his way of saying, yes, a lot of these atrocities actually occurred. I was there. So it goes.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the movie as well, and I think they might the right choice it putting most of his zoo-captivity toward the end of the movie. The time jumps can be confusing enough without that layer intertwined, but I was worried for most of the movie they were just going to completely omit that, and I'm glad they didn't. Overall, Slaughterhouse Five is an interesting story that I had never heard of, and am glad to have read and watched.
Before this course I had never heard of this novel. It was really tough at the beginning to continue reading but once I did continued to read it, it wasn't so bad. The writing in the novel did confuse while reading since I did not expect it to be worded it was. But overall the novel itself had a lot of historical facts from the war which honestly I find to be an interesting topic.
ReplyDeleteI have never hreard of this book before this class so it was a very nice read. Alot of things talked about this book was very new to me. That way it was written kinda reminded me of a book i read while back called no longer human. What I love most about this book was how chaotic and strange the book is I enjoy stories that really at times almost feel buzzard and this book has that feeling to it. This was a very fun read I think more people should read this book if they haven't there's a lot one can learn from it.
ReplyDeleteShannon Duckworth
ReplyDeleteI read this book in high school years ago, I did not remember much of it. I did however remember the structure. It was a little confusing. It took me a few chapters to get into the book but once I did, I found it very interesting. Billy went through so much trama throughout his life and I feel that there were things that showed this in the book. The way he reacts to certain things, it shows that everyone deals with PTSD differently. I really enjoyed reading this book again and understanding it more.
I just typed an entire review and then lost internet so here's take 2. So to start off I did like the beginning of the book as I am a fan of war novels, although his fighting was short lived it did not take long to take a sad and bleek turn into his life and as a POW, from his father dying to shoveling corpses at camp after the allied bombing it seemed like he could'nt catch a break and was doomed. After he gets out and marries the book should of ended, but sadly for me it didn't. I'm not to sure what to think about his alien episode but it was not at all what I expected. Was he coping with PTSD and made up a lie? Did he like morphine too much when he came back? Not sure, but was a really strange point of view the entire book.
ReplyDeleteDylan Gagnon. Apparently I got logged out too
DeleteI had not heard of this book before this class. This book was honestly very confusing for me. Typically i do like war books and do find them very interesting but this one like i said was just very confusing for me. I felt as if there was always something different happening, whether it was with the main character or not, there was always something going on.I did enjoy reading this book and think that other people would definitely benefit from reading this book.
ReplyDeleteSabrina Soler
ReplyDeleteI had never heard of this book before taking this class. I found it very difficult to understand and did not enjoy it much at all at first. I'm not the biggest fan of history so this book didn't peak my interest when I began reading. As I read on it did become more interesting. I really enjoyed the time traveling aspect.