Slaughterhouse 5 Chapter 4 & 5, Slaughterhouse 5 notes and chapters 1-5
What book did Rosewater say"That everything you need to know about life", is in this book?
The Brothers Karamazarov
How is Billy lifted into the flying saucer?
The saucer hovered over Billy, and to enclose him in a cylinder of pulsing in purple light. Now there was the sound of a seeming kiss as an air tight hatch in the bottom of the saucer was opened. Down snaked a ladder that was outlined in pretty lights like a Ferris wheel. Billy's will was paralyzed by a zap gun aimed at him from one of the portholes. It became imperative that he take hold of the bottom rung of the sinuous ladder, which he did. The rung was electrified, so that Billy's hands locked onto it hard. He was hauled into the airlock, and machinery closed the bottom door.
Dresden
"Florence on the Elbe"
Is there a similarity between the format of Vonnegut's novel and the description of Tralfamadorian novels? Explain.
-not in chronological order, meant to show all of a life not just parts -"There is no beginning, no middle, no end, no suspense, no moral, no causes, no effects."
In his novel, The Gospel from Outer Space, what does Kilgore Trout say is the message of the gospels? How do the aliens change that message?
...
What did Billy pilgrim say about the Universe from the creatures on Tralfamadore?
...
How old was Billy when he went to the Grand Canyon with his family?
12
how does billy describe the tralfamadorians?
2 feet tall, green, shaped like a plumber, suction cups on the ground, hold their eyes in their hand
How many sexes were on tralfamadore?
5
How many beds were in the hospital?
6
How many sexes were their on earth in fourth dimension?
7
What do Tralfamadorians see humans as?
They see them as millepedes, with babies legs on one side and old legs on the other
What does Billy do to occupy his time before the aliens come?
Before the aliens come, Billy watches a late-night documentary on American bombers and their gallant pilots in World War II to occupy his time.
What do the Tralfamadorians suggest Earthlings should learn to do?
They suggest that the Earthlings should learn to ignore the awful times, and concentrate one the good ones. In the book, the Tralfamadorians say, " That's one thing Earthlings might learn to do, if they tried hard enough..." (Vonnegut 117)
How do the Tralfamadorians when Billy asks "why me?"
They think it's a very earthling thing for him to say. They tell him that there is no why, since the moment simply is and since all of them are trapped in the moment, like bugs in amber.
What were the candles and Soaps made out of?
They were made out of rendered jews,gypsies,communists, and other enemies of the state
What does the way Tralfamadorians view the universe and Earthlings tell us about their concept of time?
Tralfamadorians see all of time at once and it's never ending. They don't believe in free will because they think everything has already happened in the 4th dimension.
What song were the Englishmen singing when they marched out?
Hail Hail, the gangs all here
What does Weary tell the other men in his car before he dies?
Weary tells the other man to avenge his death by killing Billy.
Describe Billy's habitat in the Tralfamadorian zoo.
His habitat in the Tralfamadorian zoo looked like a house in a magazine or a display in the store. There was a couch that turned into a bed, pool table, home bar, and end tables with lamps. The TV didn't work, but a picture of a cowboy killing another cowboy pasted on the television tube.
post modernism
a literary movement in the mid/late 20th century that emphasizes a skeptical view of art and culture
what fatal accident did he cover?
a veterans ring got caught in an elevator door and he was squished
What does the author do to entertain himself at night? Why can't he sleep?
call his old girlfriends and friends, listen to music, talk to his dog; he can't sleep because of the war
why does the photographer stage a pic of billy's capture?
he wanted something more lively
how is he captured and with whom?
he was being an idiot and would not walk; he was captured with Weary
When Billy was at the Russian exterminations camp's the Germans gave Billy a coat, what did the coat look like?
it had a fur collar and linings of crimson silk and it was full of bulletholes
describe the car that housed the railroad gaurds
it had bunk beds, quilts, a stove, wine, bread, soup, and it was warm in there
what is a tralfamadore? what happens to billy there?
it is a planet he is sent to by a flying saucer; he is displayed naked and mates with a former earthling movie star montana wildhack
what jobs did the author have after the war?
police reporter for chicago city news bureau
what is the origin of the phrase "so it goes"?
tralfamadorians say it when they see a dead body
what difference does the author see in the veterans who actually fought and the ones who had office jobs?
the ones who actually fought hated the war and the ones with office jobs did not know what is was like
what processes for the americans go through when they arrive at camp?
they are given coats from dead soldiers, they take mass showers, they are deloused
describe the German reserves they pass
they are rough, look more experience than the people that captured him, they were more tough and violent
what ability do the tralfamadorians have that the earthlings do not?
they can see in 4 dimensions and the earthlings can only see in 3 demensions
why does the german photographer take a picture of billy's and weary's feet?
they put the picture in the newspaper depicting the americans as weak because they couldn't afford shoes for their soldiers
what response does the author get when he tries to get information about Dresden?
they told him it was top secret
what happened to the scouts?
they were shot by germans
Describe the conditions on the train.
they were terrible; the men were crammed in there
What happened in the children's crusade?
two monks raised armies of children in Germany and France and sold them as slaves in Africa
Describe the German force that captured Billy.
two were young, two were old men, they were irregulars and sloppy looking
what are the major events of Billy's life depicted in Chapter 2?
wedding day, birth, wife's death, father's death, the war, the plane crash
Why does the widowed mother think Billy is "going crazy?"
He talks about Tralfamadore when no one else believes is true
What hospital was he in, in 1948?
A nonviolent mental patients hospital
What does Campbell write about American POWs in Germany?
Basically, Campbell writes that people in America are poor and those poor people hate themselves. Those people who have no money, blame themselves for that. He says that there is no fraternity between the soldiers and that American POWs are childish and self-pitying.
Describe the English POWs that Billy and the Americans encounter
Billy and his group encounter a group of singing prisoners after being dog-tagged by the Germans. They are a healthy looking group of men that the Germans appreciated because they look like true Englishmen. They are fit, they have food and lots of shelter, and they are even having a great time and singing. What is interesting is that they look just like what the author describes in the beginning of the book when he mentions how movies make out war to be glamorous and soldiers to be handsome heroes who always triumph.
How does the message of the war movie change when it is viewed backwards?
By watching the war in the opposite direction, it takes on the opposite meaning. World War II was an unbelievably violent, traumatic, and destructive moment in history, but when watched backwards it is transformed into a period of intense healing and care giving. In reverse, soldiers and pilots no longer belong to conflicting groups but to humanity as a whole; they no longer try to kill each other. Instead, they choose to help each other, resulting in the whole human race working together to ease suffering.
When billy was put into the hospital what american volunteered to watch over him?
Edgar Derby
Who introduced Billy pilgrim to Science Fiction?
Eliot Rosewater
What commemoration does Billy think of on his wedding night?
Everything was beautiful, and nothing hurt
When Billy was vaccinated with morphine what dream was he having?
He was having a dream about giraffes
Why is Billy upset by his mother?
In the novel the following is stated, "She made him feel embarrassed and ungrateful and weak because she had gone to so much trouble to give him life, and to keep that life going, and Billy didn't really like life at all." (Vonnegut 102) Billy is upset with his mother simply because she is his mother.
What was the picture of on the refrigerator?
It was a picture of a Gay Ninety year old couple on bicycles
What was the book Gospel from outer space about?
It was about a visitor from outer space, shaped alot like a tralfamadorian. The visitor from outer space made a serious study about christianity.
What did the Englishmen call the germans as?
Jerrys
What is introduced to Billy in the veterans' hospital?
Kilgore Trout books
Why does science fiction appeal to Billy and Rosewater?
Science fiction appeals to Billy and Rosewater because it is an escape from the reality of their lives into a new world. It also helps them try to re-invent themselves and their universe
What processes do the Americans go through when they arrive at the camp?
The Americans give their names and serial numbers so that they can be reported to the Red Cross. After this, they are marched to sheds occupied by middle-aged British POWs.
How did the Universe end?
The Universe ended like this, A tralfamadorian test pilot blows it up by testing new fuels for there flying saucers
Why do the other POWs refuse to let Billy sleep near them?
The reason why the other POWs refuse to let Billy sleep near them in Slaughterhouse Five is because he kicks, whimpers, and yells in his sleep.
What was Billy's dogtags like?
The tags were like salt crackers
What did billy pilgrims room look like in tralfamadore?
There were tables with lamps and ashtrays on them by the couch. Their was a home bar with stools. The carpeting was federal gold
What do Tralfamadorians like in books?
They like many marvelous moments seen all at one time
What only English book did the Tralfamadorians have?
Valley of the dolls
Kurt Vonnegut
author of slaughterhouse 5
Battle of the Bulge
became a prisoner of war here
why does the doctor tell billy to take a nap everyday?
because Billy would weap for no reason; it is because of the war
why does weary try to beat billy?
because billy wouldn't move and they were trying to run from german soldiers
what souvenirs did he recall the American POWs bringing out of Germany?
diamonds, emeralds, rubies, a plaster model of the eiffel tower
how does the message of the war movie changes when it is played backwards?
everything is being perfected but when played forward everything is being destroyed
what does Billy's encounter with the marine major tell us about billy's approach to life?
he doesn't like change
what are the two causes of the destruction that billy drives through on his way to the Lion Club Meeting?
he drove through the ghetto and they had burned it down; he drove by where he used to live and the government had torn it down
what does billy do to occupy his time before the alien come
he goes to his daughters room, went to the kitchen and drank champagne, watched a war movie forwards and backwards
Why do the British POWs send Billy to the hospital shed?
he had a nervous breakdown during Cinderella
What does the author mean when he says that Billy has become "unstuck in time"?
he keeps jumping around time
why do the other POWs refuse to let billy sleep next to them?
he kicks and screams
describe Billy's war experience up to his capture
he was sent with nothing; it was pretty lousy; he fought in the battle of the bulge
when and how did billy first come unstuck in time?
he was stopped in the forrest leaning against a tree
How did the author find O'Hare?
he would get drunk and call all of his old friends
what did the author learn in college after the war?
nobody was ridiculous or bad or distgusting
What aspects of the books does the author insist really happened?
one guy was shot in Dresden for taking a teapot that wasn't his; one guy was threatened to have his personal enemies by hired gunmen after the war
"So it goes"
one of many repeated words and phrases that run through his book; it highlights meaninglessness
what does weary tell the other men before he dies?
that billy killed him
What was the main ingredient of the candles and soap used at the welcoming dinner for the American POWS?
the "fat of rendered Jews and Gypsies and fairies and communists, and other enemies of the State."