Thus science and discussions of scientific phenomena with his brother also formed the backdrop to his early life, another reason why technology featured so prominently in his literary works.
Vonnegut is credited with helping to elevate the genre of science fiction, once considered a staple of pulp magazine racks, to that of high art. Cat's Cradle tells the tale of scientists trying to create 'ice-nine,' a crystal that could turn all water solid and thus destroy all life on the earth. In 1963, Cat's Cradle slowly developed a readership as Cold War Americans were increasingly receptive to a book that showed the dangerous potential of science and technology to develop faster than ethics and morality ("Novelist Kurt Vonnegut dies at 84," CNN.com, 2007) the novel, takes its title from an Eskimo game in which children try to snare the sun with string (Smith, 2007). Although its first printing sold only 500 copies, it has become a staple of English classes all over America today (Smith, 2007).
His literary style is unmistakable and transgressive on the page: "Mr. Vonnegut eschewed traditional structure and punctuation. His books were a mixture of fiction and autobiography, prone to one-sentence paragraphs, exclamation points and italics" (Smith, 2007). Although read in high school classes and colleges today, during the early years of his literary production, some readers and even professional reviewers found his style confusing, even "incoherent. His harshest critics called him no more than a comic book philosopher, a purveyor of empty aphorisms" (Smith, 2007). A more serious charge is that his books are misogynistic, which some people trace to the fact that his mother suffered from mental illness, the source of many painful memories. She later committed suicide. In typical acerbic fashion, Vonnegut observed:...
The author even inserts himself as a character throughout key events, such as the latrine at the POW camp and digging in the corpse mines in Dresden. The insertions serve to remind the reader that though fiction, the events described in the novel actually happened, to people like Billy Pilgrim/Kurt Vonnegut. However, Vonnegut also uses several techniques not found in the works of noted memoir writers such as Tobias Wolff
The best evidence for this suffusion in the author's own life is in the final chapter, when the main character/author returns in full force. Traveling peacefully and happily in a plane above Berlin, during a moment he considers "one of the nicest ones in recent times" (Vonnegut, p. 211), removed in time and space from Dresden, Vonnegut "imagined dropping bombs on those lights, those villages and cities and towns," (Vonnegut,
I enjoyed Vonnegut's commentary on the strangeness of humankind's foibles and I was not shocked by some of his matter-of-fact depictions. Indeed, when Vonnegut draws on his own real-life experiences, the novel takes on an air of authenticity. This authenticity coupled with Vonnegut's wry, black humor makes the novel seem caustic and ironic, but at heart it is neither -- it is simply a record of things both real and
Through his experiences and adventures, Billy becomes a symbol more than a mere character. He obviously has more insight into how things truly are, than the rest of the characters in the book. Not accidentally, Billy becomes unstuck in time precisely during the Second World War, hinting thus at the need to escape the imminence of death as a constantly pending menace: "The Tralfamadorians didn't have anything to do
The failed quest of Vonnegut the character underlines another important theme of the novel -- although life may seem 'fated' as Pilgrim perceives it to be, our own perceptions affect how we see our past and reconstruct the past. Our minds are erasers, always writing and rewriting events. Our perception of time is highly personalized. For example, Vonnegut the character is surprised that his old friend Bernard has changed
Interviewer Good morning Mr. Vonnegut! First of all, I would like to thank you for giving me this wonderful opportunity of having to interview you! Vonnegut Good morning to you too! It's actually my honor and pleasure to be interviewed by a popular columnist like you. I hope this will not be the last. Interviewer Oh certainly Kurt. I am a very good fan of yours. In fact, I have read a lot of your
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