Paper of Many Parts: Slaughterhouse-Five: or, the Children’s
Crusade, a Duty-Dance with Death
by Kurt Vonnegut
by Dana Smith
Slaughterhouse-Five, to shorten the title, is an intricate novel about Billy Pilgrim, a WWII veteran, who is continually getting unstuck in time, or time traveling throughout his own life. Billy Pilgrim achieves this burden/privilege—depending on how the reader sees it—through his dealings with the Tralfamadorians. The Tralfamadorians were little green aliens that resembled “plunger’s friends.” They saw in four dimensions and wanted to share many things with Earthlings, especially about time. They abduct Billy and bring him to their planet, Tralfamadore, where parts of the story take place. The well-known fire-bombing of Dresden and WWII are greatly discussed topics in Slaughterhouse-Five, however, it explores the concept of time also making the novel an interesting read.
Character Descriptions
Billy Pilgrim: accepting, quiet, puzzled, respectable
Paul Lazzaro: shameful, consistent, dishonorable, vengeful
Tralfamadorians: intelligent, kind, friendly, considerate
Discussion/Essay Questions
1. Kurt Vonnegut starts Slaughterhouse-Five with an introduction to the book as Chapter 1. Why do you think he makes this a chapter instead of a foreword?
2. The Tralfamadorians see time as Earthlings see a vast plain; every moment for them is splayed out so that they can see past, present, and future moment as it interests them. They believe it is just another Earthling illusion that moments follow one another, “like beads on a string.” Which belief do you prefer; the Tralfamadorian sense of time or an Earthling sense of time? Explain your reasoning.
3. In Slaughterhouse-Five when Vonnegut spoke about Billy Pilgrim becoming unstuck in time he slightly implied that Billy may be imagining things. However, on page 195, Billy reads a magazine article asking the question “What really happened to Montana Wildhack?” providing possible proof for Billy’s time-traveling. (Montana Wildhack is the movie star that the Tralfamadorians abducted to be Billy’s mate on Tralfamadore.) Do you think that Vonnegut made this contradiction on purpose? If so, what do you think his reasoning was?
Key Passage:
“So it goes.” (Kurt Vonnegut)
Key Passage Explanation
In Slaughterhouse-Five every time there is an occurrence or mention of death, Vonnegut uses the phrase, “So it goes.” Slaughterhouse-5 centers around time and death, and in the phrase, “So it goes” both time and death are included. The main function of the phrase is to allow the book to go on in spite of the large number of deaths. You can even say that “So it goes” is a theme of the book because it is saying things happen and life goes on and there’s nothing to do except let those things happen. This is the concept that the Tralfamadorians were trying to teach Billy about time.
Recommendation
This novel was more interesting than I thought it would be. The beginning was confusing because it was if I was reading a preface, yet it was a chapter, but as I read on the book came together and I began to enjoy it. Another strong point of the book was that Kurt Vonnegut made the book understandable even though he was continually jumping from period to period in Billy Pilgrim’s life. The thing that dampened my praise for Slaughterhouse-5 was the picture of Montana Wildhack, Billy’s mate on Tralfamadore. Words could have been enough; an illustration was not needed.