IceM
05-21-2010, 10:46 PM
Just as the casual customer in a bookstore flips through a few random pages before purchasing a book, Kurt Vonnegut randomly writes his masterpiece, Slaughterhouse 5.
The plot structure (while trying to avoid plot summary or spoilers) is fragmented and seemingly random, and unlike most novels avoids a linear structure. Vonnegut's plot structure gravitates around the opening sentence of the second chapter; Billy Pilgrim becomes unstuck in time. His life is no longer linear. This becomes evident to the reader quickly; each chapter is riddled with passages of Billy being transported to other sections of his life (or in certain situations, other planets). Yet this is not what makes the novel an "American Pastime" of sorts.
Through iconic phrasing and a seeming apathy (mixed with mild doses of dark humor) Vonnegut presents an idea similar to Carlos Castaneda's early novels; that no moment in time is more important than any other; or more briefly, that every moment in time is equal. No favoritism is necessary because everything is equal. Death is equal in status to one's own birthday. Likewise, Vonnegut's method of presenting this said idea distances himself from humanity (and in some ways, modern thinking) yet this idea resonates with the reader. Everyone, whether intentionally or not, plays favorites. It's perhaps our greatest crime. There's always a friend or sibling we prefer more than the others. But to Vonnegut, such an idea is trifling. He prefers the Tralfamadorian approach (and Castaneda's "Don Juan" approach); that all moments are equal in time; that we should "see" the value in each moment instead of "look" at what is present. And because of the striking originality and cleverness of his prose, symbolism and thematic relevance, Slaughter-House 5 is one of the most significant novels of the past 60 years.
The plot structure (while trying to avoid plot summary or spoilers) is fragmented and seemingly random, and unlike most novels avoids a linear structure. Vonnegut's plot structure gravitates around the opening sentence of the second chapter; Billy Pilgrim becomes unstuck in time. His life is no longer linear. This becomes evident to the reader quickly; each chapter is riddled with passages of Billy being transported to other sections of his life (or in certain situations, other planets). Yet this is not what makes the novel an "American Pastime" of sorts.
Through iconic phrasing and a seeming apathy (mixed with mild doses of dark humor) Vonnegut presents an idea similar to Carlos Castaneda's early novels; that no moment in time is more important than any other; or more briefly, that every moment in time is equal. No favoritism is necessary because everything is equal. Death is equal in status to one's own birthday. Likewise, Vonnegut's method of presenting this said idea distances himself from humanity (and in some ways, modern thinking) yet this idea resonates with the reader. Everyone, whether intentionally or not, plays favorites. It's perhaps our greatest crime. There's always a friend or sibling we prefer more than the others. But to Vonnegut, such an idea is trifling. He prefers the Tralfamadorian approach (and Castaneda's "Don Juan" approach); that all moments are equal in time; that we should "see" the value in each moment instead of "look" at what is present. And because of the striking originality and cleverness of his prose, symbolism and thematic relevance, Slaughter-House 5 is one of the most significant novels of the past 60 years.