A LITERARY OVERVIEW

KURT VONNEGUT:

Early Career

1940-1943- studied at Cornell University in New York Ironically for chemistry and biology Managing editor and columnist for its daily

paper, the Sun 1946-1947- Worked for Chicago City

News Bureau. Graduated as a student in anthropology at University of Chicago.

1952- Published his first novel Player Piano

After a near decade of small successes he would publish one of his first classics Mother Night

Mother Night

Published in 1961 Genre: Historical Fiction Synopsis: Howard W. Campbell Jr.

moved to Germany at the conclusion of WWI to work as a writer.

He is recruited to help further the Nazi cause, which leads to his recruitment as an American spy.

Because of his participation in Nazi propaganda, Campbell is tried for war crimes in Israel. Mother Night is Campbell’s account of these experiences.

Mother Night cont’d

Meaningful Quote: “There are plenty of good reasons for fighting…but no good reason to hate without reservation…” (First sentence of the Book of Bokenon)

Critic’s reaction: “Gut wrenching and beautiful at the same time, every character is both a hero and villain in his or her own right, and every scene will leave you questioning where you stand in a world of double standards. Worth a read for anyone who feels any bit of sentimentalism toward individual or group ideologies.” -Aaron

Cat’s Cradle

Published in 1963 Genre: Satire/Science Fiction Synopsis: Scientists race to

obtain the world’s most dangerous substance, a form of ice that freezes at room temperature.

Satirizes the arms race and religion. Bokononism, a religious philosophy, usefully focuses on man as sacred but offers no comfort or salvation.

Cat’s Cradle cont’d

Meaningful quotes: “All of the true things tha I am about you are shameless lies.” (Opening of Book of Bokonon)

“Round and round and round we spin, with feet of lead and wings of tin…” (Chapter 24)

“Anyone unable to understand how a useful religion can be founded on lies will not understand this book either. So be it.” (Jonah from Chapter 4)

Critic’s Reaction: “Cat’s Cradle is an irreverent and often highly entertaining fantasy concerning the playful irresponsibility of scientists.”

Slaughterhouse Five

Published March of 1969 Genre: Metafiction, historic, war novel, and

science fiction Brief Synopsis of Plot:

Main character: Billy Pilgrim, an American soldier

Story Synopsis: During WWII, he is captured by Germans and becomes a POW in a concentration camp.

He survives the Holocaust and returns home where he marries a wealthy woman and has two children.

He is in a plane crash and is abducted by an alien flying saucer on the night of his daughter’s wedding.

He is imprisoned in a zoo for many years and learns the philosophy of the Trafalmadorians.

He recovers from an operation, he begins to talk about his time travel to Tralfamadore and every one thinks he is insane including his family. Billy Pilgrim is then assassinated at a public speaking engagement.

Slaughterhouse Five cont’d

Meaningful quote from the work: "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to always tell the difference." -Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five, Chapter 3 (pg. 60 and pg. 209)

“I feel like literature that provokes a big reaction is good literature. If you get a stir out of the general public as an author, than you know that they’re listening. SH5 made readers think about the harsh realities of war, whether they wanted to or not. Sure, some of the narrative is a little exaggerated, but Vonnegut sure as hell doesn’t paint a pretty, glorified picture of American soldiers. He took away the glorified image of an American solider that society had and replaced it with the harsh reality that war isn’t pretty.”- Alicia

Themes: Role Of Fate In Life (never seizes control of his existence and accepts the philosophy of the aliens without question). A minor theme is The Inhumanity Of War (Dresden).

Motifs: The repeating phrase “So It Goes”. Follows every mention of death whether it is natural, accidental, or

intentional, the smell of mustard gas and roses, a dance with death, and feet and claws of the colors blue and ivory.

Slaughterhouse House Five cont’d Writing Style & Characteristics: Uses science fiction to

characterize the world and nature of existence. His chaotic fictional universe abounds in wonder, coincidence, randomness, and irrationality. Vonnegut’s science fiction is comic not “black humor”. He also makes drawings and doodles with felt-tip pens throughout the pages in his books.

Vonnegut has seven deceptively simple principles that he follows when he writes:

1. Find a subject you care about. 2. Do not ramble, though. 3. Keep it simple. 4. Have the guts to cut. 5. Sound like yourself. 6. Say what you mean. 7. Pity the readers.

Breakfast of Champions (Goodbye Blue Monday)

Published May 1973 Genre: Humor, Science fiction, satire, fiction Synopsis: Wayne Hoover (auto salesman)

meets Kilgore Trout who is about to get a Nobel Prize. Hoover takes Trout’s fiction as truth.

Meaningful quote: “New knowledge is the most valuable commodity on earth. The more truth we have to work with, the richer we become.”

Critic’s Reaction: “It is a brilliant piece of social commentary on modern America that continues to be relevant in the new millennium.”

Themes/motifs: Race, destruction of the earth, birds, slavery

Sources

Klinkowitz, Jerome, and Donald L. Lawler. Vonnegut in America: an Introduction to the Life and Work of Kurt Vonnegut. New York: Delacorte/S. Lawrence, 1977. Print.

"Cat's Cradle." Amazon.com: Online Shopping for Electronics, Apparel, Computers, Books, DVDs & More. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://www.amazon.com/>.

"Cat's Cradle." Vonnegut Web. Web. 16 May 2011. <vonnegutweb.com>. "Mother Night." Book Rags. Web. 16 May 2011. <bookrags.com>. "Mother Night." The College of Education - Home Page. Web. 16 May

2011. <http://www.edb.utexas.edu/resources/booksR4teens>. "Mother Night." Refspace. Web. 16 May 2011.

<refspace.com/quotes/Mother_Night>. "Mother Night." Goodreads. Web.

<goodreads.com/book/show/9592.Mother_Night>. "Mother Night." Barnes & Noble - Books, Textbooks, EBooks, Toys,

Games, DVDs and More. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://www.barnesandnoble.com/>.

Sources cont’d

Erlanger, Steven, and Katrin Bennhold. "Breakfast of Champions." The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://www.nytimes.com/>.

"Breakfast of Champions." Used, New, and Out of Print Books - We Buy and Sell - Powell's Books. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://www.powells.com/>.

"Slaughter House Five." Rare Books from Bloody Rare Books: First Editions, Signed and Collectible Rare Books in Horror and Science Fiction. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://www.bloodyrarebooks.com/>.

"Slaughter House Five." Online Study Guides | Book Reviews | Children's Books | Message Boards at Pinkmoney.com. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://www.pinkmoney.com/>.

"Slaughter House Five." Kansas State University. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://www.k-state.edu/>.

"Slaughter House Five." VONNEGUT•COM -- The Official Website of Kurt Vonnegut. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://www.vonnegut.com/>.

Nordquist, Richard. "Kurt Vonnegut on Writing With Style - Vonnegut on Style - Quotations on Writing." Grammar and Composition - Homepage of About Grammar and Composition. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://grammar.about.com/od/rhetoricstyle/a/vonnegutstyle.htm>.