Chapter 10: Response/Thoughts

The way Vonnegut ended the novel was an excellent way to wrap everything back together, so the reader could fully comprehend the message. The message that war and massacre are senseless. As I received this message, I began to accept events such as the Olympics even more than I already do. And as an athlete, I like the Olympics a lot. Anyway, I became more infatuated with the idea because it is a non-violent way for countries to compete without harming one another. War and massacre are senseless, and the questions why they occur cannot be answered.

Chapter 10: RHETORICAL QUESTION

In the final chapter, Vonnegut repeats a previous rhetorical question. As Vonnegut ends the novel, a question that appeared in chapter 1 reappears: "One bird said to Billy Pilgrim, "Poo-tee-weet?"" (215). This question first shows up in chapter 1, when Vonnegut is describing a massacre. He says there is no intelligent response to a massacre. The things birds say make no sense, therefore there is no sense in replying. He makes the connection that bird talk makes no sense just as anybody's talk about war. The question, "Poo-tee-weet?" is unanswerable. It is simply a question meant to effect what the reader acquires from the novel.

Chapter 9: Response/Thoughts

The end of chapter 9 was quite intriguing. The way Billy tried to announce to the world that there are far more complex beings besides humans, is like a man trying to proclaim that the world really is going to end. A man in the film 2012 held his own radio station with all sorts of updates about the end of the world. However, not a single person took him seriously. This situation is somewhat similar to Billy's predicament. Billy tried to inform the Earthlings of the astonishing Tralfamadorians, but no one believed him. He was escorted from the radio station building. Both of these men had incredible news to report. Unfortunately, people do not believe these 'crazy' stories.

Chapter 9: SYMBOL

Near the end of chapter 9, Vonnegut becomes even more of a symbolic writer. The time-traveling continues after the bombing, when "Billy and five other American prisoners were riding in a coffin-shaped green wagon" (193-194). It came to my attention that maybe the coffin-shaped wagon symbolized all who had died in the Dresden bombing. The coffin-shaped wagon is a symbolic death suffered by the survivors of the brutal war. Then, when the two Germans make it known to Billy the condition of the horses pulling the wagon, Billy understands his history withholds his own defeat. This part of chapter 9 results in a complex thought process connecting everything that has occurred thus far.

Chapter 8: Response/Thoughts

This chapter's main topic was getting to know Kilgore Trout. He turned out to be a crude and selfish man. When Vonnegut first began describing Trout, my first thoughts compared him to Ebenezer Scrooge. Both are nasty men, as far as personalities. Although Trout is an entertaining man, he is rude to children and uses his wit to fool people. In the beginning, Kilgore seems like a surly man because he is not as successful as he wants. His personality compares to Scrooge's in that both men are not happy unless they are happy.

Chapter 8: FORESHADOWING

Since this novel is all about time travel, the amount of foreshadowing is obvious. Vonnegut makes clever use of his foreshadowing skills. However, I noticed more use in chapter 8 than in any other chapter. The most important event that Vonnegut begins to foreshadow is the Dresden bombing: "It was the next night that about one hundred and thirty thousand people in Dresden would die" (165). The constant build-up to this life changingoccurance was foreshadowed in the beginning pages. Vonnegut had been foreshadowing the event the entire novel, then the next night, the city of Dresden is vanquished.

Chapter 7: Response/Thoughts

Although brief, chapter 7 held many events critical to the novels continuance. The final happenings of the chapter, when Billy and Edgar Derby are sneakily eating syrup, reminds me of my younger cousins. Children always seem to be sneaking a cookie out of the cookie jar. Then, when someone begins to approach, they quickly eat it or put it back. Billy does this to Edgar at the end of the chapter. He quickly stuffs the syrup lollipop into Edgar's mouth and hides it before the person gets to them.