Essay Example on Kurt Vonnegut Revisits Dresden: A Guggenheim Tale

Introduction

Kurt Vonnegut, author, and the narrator begins by stating that the story he is about to say is "more or less" certain. As part of a Guggenheim Fellowship, Vonnegut returned to Dresden in 1967 with a friend of the war, Bernard O'Hare and asked a taxi driver how the city was after the 1944 incendiary bomb. The taxi driver stated that the city was in good condition and that the conditions of communism had improved. Later, taxi driver O'Hare sent a letter expressing his desire to see Vonnegut and O'Hare in a world of peace and freedom.

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Significance of the book

The main significance of the book is the effects of war and death. The book revolves stories of how people died after a bomb explosion (Vonnegut, 1969). This first section introduces a critical element of the novel: its irony or the distance between what the characters want and what is going on. Here, taxi drivers who want peace are weakened by the Vietnam War, which begins when Vonnegut writes the book.

Another affirmation of the novel: is the idea that soldiers from both sides, Germans and allied, were just "children". The readers are shown how the young people had no voice when it came to war (Vonnegut, 1969). The adults continued to plan the war despite the young people been on the battle field. The author wanted to teach people on the consequences of war and why people never appreciate peace and freedom.

This confrontation between war and unstoppable glaciers is a good example of the "fate" of the novel. One cannot stop everything from happening. Later, Tralfamadorians agree that war is part of life and that it is impossible to thwart it: it will come despite man's efforts. When he returned from Europe in 1945, Vonnegut spent 23 years trying to write a book about incendiary bombs in Dresden, which he considered a prisoner of war.

The themes present in the book are war, money and success, and science fiction. Each theme is useful in the book since it has some moral importance at the end of the book.

War and Death

In the book, the author tries to come terms with the killings of over 100000 Germans who were killed because of the firebombing at Dresden. Most of the people who were killed were civilians, and this bomb destroyed one of Europe's most beautiful city. The author explains this situation by using himself as an example of how he experiences war(Vonnegut, 1969). He does this through the narrative of Billy Pilgrim. Billy was a fictional character who occasionally intersected Vonnegut's character. In the book, different characters experience death and way in different ways.

In chapter one, it is clear that Vonnegut reconnects with an old war friend. The olds friend wife is angry with Vonnegut. The wife fears that a war may erupt during a contest between heroes and those who are not. In the slaughterhouse many animals were killed, many other shelters collapsed, killing the people who were inside.

The other theme is science fiction and aliens. The presence of aliens shows that the movie is made of characters that are beyond the current world imagination. The elements of the science fiction novel include time travel. Billy goes back in time, discovering the unusable and repeated events of his life (Vonnegut, 1969). Discover the strange world of Trafalmadore that spends all the time at the same time. But this resistance has its disadvantages: even brutal acts live forever. Memory is one of the important points of the novel. Vonnegut and Billy cannot overcome the Dresden massacre because of their memories.

Money and Success

In the book it clear that people are meditating for the nature of success. O'Hare and Vonnegut are portrayed as wealthy characters in the late 1960s. Vonnegut though was expected to have no money, but he had hopes that his Dresden will be a hit. In the book, Pilgrim is portrayed as a bad soldier. In the rail car, no one even wants to sleep with him (Vonnegut, 1969). He appears to be a bad sleeper. Later in life, he becomes successful, and each person wants to associate with him. He even marries Valencia, a daughter of another successful optometrist. Billy's experience with the Tralfamhadorians he is taken as a famous speaker because he knew the nature of time and death. So the characters in the book were all about finding good treasures in life, and being able to control others.

It is a vast subject that contains many important ideas. Vonnegut wants to prevent his novel from becoming a conventional narrative in wartime, a conventional narrative that makes war fun or exciting. Throughout the book, we see stories of this kind in the story's charter and character's spirit. But this novel is more interested in nonfiction, such as insignificant issue posed by birds at the end of the novel, or the opposite of the narrative.

Conclusion

In conclusion the book tries to talk about war. The consequences and how people get killed. The author tries to preach peace and freedom. Each person would like to be continue with his or her business without feeling disrupted. The author gives an example of himself and how the war affected him.

References

Vonnegut, K. (1969). Slaughterhouse-five: Or, the Children's Crusade, a Duty-dance with Death. Modern Library.