Figurative Devices in "Slaughterhouse Five"

Here is a compiled list of figurative devices in Kurt Vonnegut's novel, "Slaughterhouse Five":

Alliteration
"...all humanity, without exception, conspired biologically to produce two perfect people..."
(p.75)

Allusion
"And Hitler turned into a baby, Billy supposed."
(p.75)

Assonance
"So what do the three musketeers do now?"
(p.49)

Epiphet
"I think the climax of the book will be the execution of poor old Edgar Derby"
(p.4-5)

Hyperbole
"She was as big as a house because she couldn't stop eating"
(p.107)

Metaphor
"Derby described the artificial weather that Earthlings sometimes create... shells were bursting, showering down knives and needles and razorblades"
(p.106)

Metonymy
"They called them "yank", told them "good show, promised them "Jerry was on the run", and so on."
(p.95)

Personification"
"He ate a pear. It fought back against his grinding teeth. It snapped in juicy protest."
(p.99)

Repetition
" 'I am. I certainly am', said Billy Pilgrim"
(p.61)

Simile
"He was a funny looking child... shaped like a bottle of coca-cola"
(p.23)

deconstructing morality?

    Are morals innate or learned? To understand this question, we have to remember what morals are; principles we act on, as to display our distinguishing of right from wrong. Our morality and ethics are directly tied to our personal values, and we do not form values innately. You have to start somewhere, and ultimately that starting point will be foundationless- if you decide that existence is pointless, then you have accepted fatalism and nothing is of any relevance. If you go the opposite route, then you ask, do I value survival? Survival is necessary to achieve any other goal, so unless you hate your life (which falls under fatalism as well, often of the suicidal kind), you should choose survival! You then begin to examine the patterns of reality, especially those that correspond to the continuation of survival. From there you can derive logic, math, science, etc. and have a foundation for knowledge. However, there are always cultural variations; certain values will differ among people, as well as the priority they place on those values. I believe this is where most of us derive our morals, values, and personal bias from. Most of us will begin with certain beliefs and assumptions about the world and life, while trying to work backwards and justify them (very obvious in many religions and traditions). In this case, our sense of morality is almost completely learned from our surroundings. The entire concept of morality is aimed to build rationally and logically sound values and premises, which is why basing morals on assumptions and unquestioning beliefs works against progression and self- development. Moral hesitation and paradoxes serve to point out the "holes" in many sets of moral values. By working in direct contrast, or thinking with a "blank canvas", we can then build ideologies unhindered by bias, childish assumptions, and moral hesitation.

    Kurt Vonnegut's novel, Slaughterhouse- Five, shows many interesting concepts and story ideas. The flow of ideas and events is smooth and comprehensible (though the protagonist is constantly traveling through time), and it's a well written novel in a whole. Some quotes from the story caught my attention;

    "It is just an illusion we have here on Earth that one moment follows another one, like beads on a string, and that once a moment is gone it is gone forever" (p.27).

    The Tralfamadorians are aliens who perceive in four dimensions, as in they can relive or visit any point of their life in the past or future, anytime they want. In this sense, death is meaningless to them, as they see existence as infinite. For example, they propose that mourning in the case of a death is silly, as a dead person is still very alive and existing in the past. This brings us to another, very prevalent quote in the story;

    "So it goes" (p.2).

    This quote is seen almost every two or three pages, and it is a saying that Billy Pilgrim, the protagonist, learns from meeting the aliens. It is used in the book after describing a tragic event (the Dresden bombing, a plane crash, etc), to empathize human mortality, and how little it means to the Tralfamadorians, who tell Billy about how life does not simply end with death. One more quote that caught my eye;

    "'GOD GRANT ME THE SERENITY TO ACCEPT THE THINGS I CANNOT CHANGE, COURAGE TO CHANGE THE THINGS I CAN, AND WISDOM ALWAYS TO TELL THE DIFFERENCE.' Among the things Billy Pilgrim could not change were the past, the present, and the future" (p.60).

    This prayer serves as a motivational quote, though Billy is described as unenthusiastic about living. I think this quote embodies Billy's powerlessness in his situation, being told of his lack of free will and choice, and then waking up uncontrollably in different points in the timeline of his life. This theme of fatalism is explored heavily in Kurt Vonnegut's science fiction, and could be seen as the most important element of the novel.

L33T KR3W (pwnz u amirite)

   Computer and text slang have become ubiquitous and ever present in our society, due to our new technologies and their widespread popularity. Much of computer and text slang is derived from abbreviations, misspellings, and simplified words. The vocabulary of Internet and text users is a reflection of our modern lives, showcasing the fast and convenient attitude and behaviour of us who live with advanced technology. How? Let us examine the trends of our modern world; the popularity of instant messaging, social networking, and texting have gone up exponentially, showing how we've grown accustomed and embracing of our new inventions. These concepts of instant, quick ways to connect socially without delay adhere perfectly to our growing desires and "need" of convenience and "asap" service, so their popularity comes off as no surprise. Some may think of this type of vocabulary as a display of laziness and lack of education, but I think of it as similar to any sort of popular slang in the English language. Think of language as a large organization, or something as simple as a tree- the roots and core remain, but it is constantly growing and changing, forming new branches and expanding until the point of dying off. It is a waste of energy protesting this, as it is natural for language to "evolve" to suit whatever is popular at the time. Thus, like popular English slang in the past, most of this writing will gradually disappear and be forgotten.

kthnxbai

Billy Pilgrim

    Billy Pilgrim plays the role of protagonist in Kurt Vonnegut's novel, Slaughterhouse-five. He is described as being born in New York, and introduced as a senile widower. However, he often time travels randomly, so he is constantly living different parts of his life. When he is old, he is known for telling people that he was kidnapped by aliens named Tralfamadorians, and how they can see every moment of their lives whenever they want to. He makes his first impressions as an old man telling crazy stories. The next part of the book shows Billy in his twenties, drafted in World War II as a "chaplain's assistant". He is lost behind German lines, without a helmet or any weapons, and tags along with three other soldiers who try to keep him alive. He then passes out in a forest, experiences his whole life from birth to death in a flash, and wakes up in different parts of his life, like his experience at a little league baseball banquet and New Year's Eve 1961 where Billy was "disgracefully drunk at a party" (p.46). This is described as "when [he] first came unstuck in time" (p.43). Overall, Billy Pilgrim paints a picture of an extremely unlucky man, who was almost drowned by his father at a young age "by the method of sink-or-swim", and showing apathy to life for the most part (p.43). He is even out of place in the army; the book describes him not "[looking] like a soldier at all- he looked like a filthy flamingo" (p.33). I predict that Billy will continue waking up in random parts of his life, as he seems to barely have any control over what happens to him.

Mi Biografía

    In all walks of life, people face challenges and obstacles. Even in the most convenient lifestyles, we are forced to struggle to achieve what we desire. "What does not kill me only makes me stronger", this Nietszche quote is famous for being motivational and inspiring for people pushing through their hardships- but there are times when our biggest problems surface when we come face to face with ourselves.

    The earliest recollections of my life are obscured in smoke bombs and the smell of burning sulfur. I was born in a small Vietnamese village in a modest hut, watching my elders prepare their traps and practice their shooting. Life was simple, we had all we needed to survive, but that's all we wanted... it was at least all we hoped for.

    One day, when I was about 5 years old, we had found out that one of the men in our village had left looking for food, and never came back. This news alarmed our village elders, but we barely had time to act before we were ambushed by the Americans. These men emerged from the bushes and trees, in shades of green as if they had been rooted in the ground themselves. Our men tried to fight back, but they were catching bullets like Tupac and Christopher Wallace. I saw my father drop to his knees before my eyes, as well as my uncle, and his uncle before him (who was going to die soon anyways). Me and the other crying children and women were in a panic, and could only think to retreat back to our huts. Past all the screaming, the gunshots, and the overwhelming despair that loomed over our humble village, I saw a piece of debris fly into our small hut. It was a live grenade.
   
    I woke up in a haze, a flash of white light struck me like lightning as I opened my eyes. I felt a mixture of sanguine and rebirth- as if I had been given another chance at life when I should`ve been dead. As my pupils began adjusting to the light, I witnessed a large, dark green figure progressing towards me. I was expecting the end of my life, but then realized this man was intending to save me. In his rough gweilo voice, he said to me, "I would help ya up, but it looks'it ya missing 'er couple arms thurr, buds!"

    I tried to extend my arms and legs, but I discovered that my limbs were blown clean off. I looked deep into his oceanic blue eyes, and could only get one word out of me... "why?"

    "Ah can't unnerstan' yo Cha-nees jibba jab", he exclaimed as he slung me over his back. "an' ah can't take ya back to Amurr-ka, but ah' know juss tha place fer' you!"

    A few years have passed. I was living with my new G.I stepdad Williams, and had resided in an isolated Vancouver shanty. By that time, I had grown accustomed to life without the luxury of limbs I once had, but I sometimes wondered what it would be like to walk again. G.I Williams told me stories everynight, especially a  "pinnochio" like fairy tale of a young limbless boy who wakes up one day with arms and legs, just by believing. I was torn between being grateful of life and hating my physical limitations, but I pressed on anyways. Without this hope, I would have never made it to this day.

    I realized that living as a head and a torso was only a challenge because I believed it to be. Because leaving yourself in self-pity does not solve anything, I instead chose to be driven through life with dedication, and hard work. The greatest challenges can be with ourselves, but hope and belief can conquer our most difficult problems. Just look at me now, a fully functioning Asian-Canadian, well to do and successful! Everything begins by trying!