Slaughterhouse+Five;+A+Review

=Slaughterhouse Five=

Kurt Vonnegut:
Kurt Vonnegut was born November 11th 1922 In Indianapolis Indiana, he lived to be 84 years old dying on April 11th 2007 in New York. Vonnegut is considered to be the greatest satirist in American literature history, he is also considered to be one of the greatest authors of the 20th century. Vonnegut attended Cornell University, as well as The University of Tennessee studying Chemistry and Military Engineering. Kurt then entered the second world war as an infantrymen who partook in the Battle of the Bulge, where he was captured by Germans and held as a prisoner of war. As a P.O.W Kurt was sent to Dresden, Germany to work, shortly before the great fire bombing of Dresden began. Kurt survived the bombings and the war, upon returning to America he devoted his life strictly to literature, and began a career as an author.

Story Line:
Billy Pilgrim is a very successful optometrist living in Ilium, New York. He is married to a well off plump women, runs a successful medical practice, is a war veteran, and the president of the local chapter of the Lions Club. Seemingly flawless life right? There is just one major problem; Billy just so happens to be unstuck in time. He can see his past, present, and future, and has the ability to travel to points in his life at any moment, weather he chooses to, or not. We watch as Billy precariously jumps from time to time in his life, weather he is at his honeymoon with his wife, or scared for his life in the makeshift meat locker, bomb shelter that he occupies in Dresden during the great bombings. As a reader we sit with a sideline view as Billy travels through his life preaching one main underlying theme, the terrors of war.

Setting:
Slaughterhouse Five has three main settings, Ilium New York, Billy's hometown, Dresden Germany, where Billy spends time as a prisoner of war, during the great fire bombing of Germany, and Tralfamadore Billy's alternate Universe home, where he is a specimen in a zoo. There are also various minor settings throughout the story, such as Billy's honeymoon suit, and the German wilderness.

Theme:
The major themes in Slaughterhouse Five are the horrors of war, and the corruption and decay of civilization. As we follow Billy Pilgrim and his time travels we see how awful war is in both past, present, and future as well as how awful civilization has become in the future (if we continue at the same rate we are on currently). In my own opinion the most interesting thing about the two themes in our story is that they are timeless. A hundred, two hundred years from now the themes of this story will still be prevalent, and so the book will still flourish.

Main Character:
The main character, and only prevalent character in the story is Billy Pilgrim. Billy is thought to be mentally insane when he speaks of his ability to time travel, and many people try their best to avoid him. Eventually the reader discovers how scarred Billy is due to his time as a prisoner in Dresden. Billy lives a comfortable life, he is truly content with himself and is accepting of everything that is happening to him, since it is all already pre-determined. Billy only seems in discontent when in the company of his daughter, who has only on role in the book, to aggravate her father.

Do I recommend this book?
Do I recommend breathing? This has been one of the best books I have read in a long time. If you enjoy a book that has true meaning, a meaning that is something relevant, and will always be relevant than this a great book for you. I recommend this book to anyone with eyes, because i feel it is a book that should be read by all people. Slaughterhouse Five is truly what a book is supposed to be, it has helped to define my philosophy in life-- the most important goal of literature.