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World War II is Over

At the end of the book, after many changes in time take place, war is finally over. Going back to what happened before, Dresden was bombed, leaving only 100 Americans alive and four German guards. They walked through Dresden, until they got to a motel, where they stayed for some time. Many events happen, like the plane crash that left Billy like practically unconscious, dreaming about his past. He looses his wife Valencia, when she drives to see what happened to Billy and dies because of carbon monoxide (all that work for nothing, ironic). This is shortly after meeting his mentor, Kilgore Trout, inviting him to his anniversary before the incident happened. Billy still stands firmly in believing in the Tralfamadore teachings, visiting his baby and Montana from time to time. After time traveling from the hospital in Vermont (telling Rumfoord that he was in Dresden and receiving the other end's point of view) to the war again, he is in a wagon going back to the Slaughter house for more resources. Billy bursts to tears when two other survivors show him the horses' bad state. Momentarily, they are captured by Russians and then given to America, their homeland. I am wordless about all the events that take place on the end of the novel and how everything connects.

What I found most interesting was how we see that all the ideas that billy provides to the world, in one or another way (either by radio or normally speaking), come from Kilgore Trout's books. MOre of his books are introduced, also in many ways (even as window dressings haha). After "the pervert" buys the window dressing, he travel to Tralfamadore where Montana is, with here interesting necklace that restates a very significant quote: "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". (Page 209)
Another shocking connection is the one about poor old Edgar Derby, which actually dies as Vonnegut presents the situation at the start of the novel, by taking a teapot. Once again, religion is questioned, in one of Trout's books, which talks about a kid that built a time machine and traveled back in time to presence the death of Jesus Christ, the well-connected son of God. In the last chapter, Vonnegut talks in first person, while he is in an airplane with his friend O'Hare, caring only about the moment (like the Tralfamadores). O'Hare is predicting that the population will breakthrough 7 billion people by 2000, which is happening now, in real life.

I am still blowed away by the ending of the book, the war is over! The crave to find thousands of dead bodies, creamed by the soldiers. The soldiers left to fight the Russians, but Billy Pilgrim was still in Dresden; no traffic, only one vehicle. The only vehicle he sees is the green wagon he rode before being kidnapped by the Russians. Even birds were talking, as one said to Billy: "Poo-tee-weet?" I really have a different view of war and life itself after reading this book.Life is very loosely wired, but that's how it is meant to be. The moment was made up so that that specific thing would happen. Destiny determines it all, if you are meant to die today, there's now sense in trying to prevent it, you will still die one way or another. It's just fate, or luck, if you believe in such thing. Everybody wonders why life it is how it is. To me, Vonnegut, and Billy Pilgrim, it just is.

Reflection

In Manuela's blog, she talks about the exemplified Tralfamadorian life. She mentions how through BIlly Pilgrim in different situations, these morals or rules for way of life are transmitted. The interesting situation that she chooses is the promise of Paul Lazzaro, about avenging his buddy Weary by killing Billy. After giving his powerful speech at Chicago, he knew he would soon be dead, assuring it to the crowd with this quote: "I, Billy Pilgrim, the tape begins, will die, have died, and always will die on February thirteen, 1976." (page 141) I found very interesting how at the end of her blog she mentions that Billy died being at peace with himself, learning the lesson of fate and how he would eventually live again. You can clearly see the analysis on her words and way of writing, which really amazed me. It has very similar points of view in comparison to my blog, which I find cool and satisfactory in certain way. To see others blogs really makes one reflect on the different situations on the book more carefully and if the points of view differ, it also helps to make up your mind.

Dresden

Once again, Billy Pilgrim finds himself in the cold and harsh conditions of the prison. He, poor old Edgar Derby and Lazzaro were taken to the theater where the rest of their lads were. According to the Englishman back in the theater, everybody should take care fo their appearances, or they would soon die. That seemed easy, but still Billy and old Edgar Derby had their beards. There, elections for an American leader would take place, since no one voted, the englishman chose old Edgar Derby for his experience. They were told that they would be taken to Dresden, an open city that would "never be bombed". Billy, as a time traveler, had seen the bombing of Dresden just thirty days away. He had also seen his death many times, in February of 1976, when Lazzaro kept his promise to Roland Weary. Of course, he doesn't really care, well he would never be really dead, what the Tralfamadores taught him. When he dozes off after having been woken up because of animal magnetism, and after he passes some time in prison talking to Lazzaro (actually being threatened, not actually a pleasant dialogue haha), he is giving a speech to a big crowd about his death. Yet again, we see sudden changes in time and place, this time between 1945 and 1967.

 When they get to Dresden, after a short trip, the city seems to be perfect. The rest of Germany was already bombed, while Dresden was supposed to be safe, which Billy knew it wasn't. Shortly after being a while there, dialogue between Billy and an ex-soldier started. Billy was trying to be friendly, but apparently BIlly's Cinderella boots bothered the guy. He criticized the boots, and how they represented the country, he was told: "And do you feel proud to represent America as you do?" (page 152) They were finally taken to a slaughterhouse, which now gives sense to the title of the book: "Slaughterhouse-Five". In case they got lost in the big city, they were asked to remember the address Slaughterhouse five, in german. With Billy's stupidity, who knows what'll happen next...

Poor Americans

Have you ever thought about what others say about you or say about a certain topic? After Billy finishes making love to Valencia he travels back to the prison while taking a leak. Interestingly, Vonnegut mentions himself in the book for the first time as: "That was me. That was the author of this book." (Page 125) There in the prison, a German that comes to visit the Englishmen is translating a text from Howard W. Campbell Jr. He states that at the same time that America is the wealthiest nation in the world, its people are mainly poor. Americans have certain hatred for the poor, because they think that they are all rich and that for them making money is easy (therefore the hatred for poor is hatred for themselves haha). Due to this belief is that the poor Americans blame themselves to death when they cannot make money. Lastly, it states that the Americans have no brotherly love at all. Campbell says that any prison administrator that had to deal with Americans should be warned that he would not presence any brotherly love, not even between brothers. "Each will be a sulky child who often wishes he were dead." (Page 130) While all these critics about the Americans are being told, Billy and all his war mates are listening (except poor Lazzaro who is getting his arm fixed).   

As in previous occasions in "Slaughterhouse Five", we see sudden changes in time and place. First, Billy travels from his bed in his honeymoon back to the war. Then, as he falls asleep as the German is translating the Campbell text, he is back in 1968 but as a widower (poor Valencia died apparently). He is talking to Barbara, not being taken seriously, like always. He is taken to a hot bed so he doesn't freeze, and as soon as he falls asleep he is back at the Tralfamadore zoo with Montana. At first all the little Tralfamadorians are excited to see earthlings mate, but as soon as Montana realizes that she wasn't at the California beach anymore, she freaks out. After what would be an Earthling week, Montana asks Billy to sleep with her, which he does. Suddenly, he wakes up in the hot bed again, after having a dream with Montana. He is back in the hot bed, soon comforting a child that had no father due to his death in Vietnam. He comforts him by telling him what the Tralfamadorians taught him: nobody really dies, the body is just at a bad state at the moment. As usual, they think Bill is crazy, making Barbara take Billy away form there. He is arguing with Barbara again, which brings up a familiar statement to Billy: "Father, father, father, what are we going to do with you?" (page 135) What are they going to do with Billy? 

The Universe As It Is Meant To Be

Have you ever pictured the mind of a war veteran? It must be certainly complicated and changed due to the war and the experiences that he had to live. Billy is lying in the veteran hospital, under his blankets due to the fact that Billy thinks that he did a bad to his mother by being born. As time went by, Billy fell asleep and "woke up" in the war again, talking about Dresden and how the wars were fought by children. " It's like the Children's Crusade". (Page 106) They reflect on this point for a short amount of time on that, especially Derby and the colonel which were aged men. Then, they mention how the Americans came out of the woods to not be killed by the Germans, which ordered them to drop their weapons and walk out of the woods if they wanted to live.  

There is a change in the pattern of writing like for 2 pages, which consist of dialogue between Rosewater and Billy's mother. They talk about how Billy was engaged to Valencia, a rich woman that would give large amounts of money to Billy of course, if they married. After Billy's mother leaves, Valencia comes and has a short dialogue with Rosewater and Billy too, about the reading that Rosewater was doing. Again, there is a change in time and Billy is in his forty's at the Tralfamadore zoo, amusing the crowd by taking a leak. He was asked several questions and asked several himself also, like how the universe would end, which the Tralfamadorians already knew. He was told that the Universe would end by a testing pilot pressing a button and making the universe disappear, which would not be prevented because it was meant to happen. He was instructed to just look at the moment instead of trying to prevent wars which was stupid.

When he was back, he was making love to his big wife, Valencia, which made him officially rich now. Billy is unhappy with Valencia, well he didn't want to marry that ugly woman even though he still had to, it would make him rich. They then went to their honey moon, where Valencia cried because she was very happy that someone had married her. Billy had seen the future of his dreadful marriage so when Valencia said that she wanted to become beautiful for him, he just told her he liked her just the way she was. "Really" (Page 120) I would never think of doing something that I really don't want to, it makes no sense at all (to me, because to Billy it seems to). What would you do if you could prevent the end of the universe: take action or just let it be as destined? Certainly I would take action, its me and thousands of other peoples' lives that are at risk, but to Billy its all okay since he hates his life. Common Billy, wake up...

German Camp

Have you ever thought in what other creatures exist outside of our planet? I have... Billy has too, with the Tralfamadorians. He gets taken and talks about the similarities and differences between humans and Tralfamadores. For example when they talk about the texts of Tralfamadore which are viewed all at one to represent how beautiful life is instead of viewing one after another. "What we love about are books is the depths of the many marvelous moments all seen at one time" (Page 88) Suddenly, he appears in the world war again after being in total darkness in the Grand Canyon being only twelve years old. At the moment Billy is captured by the Germans still and taken to a camp, where several Englishmen are too. 

He meets a guy named Eliot Rosewater, which like Billy, finds no sense to life at all. They talk about their families and experiences during the war since they are together in the camp. Billy is in that cabin do to his shrieking in the cinderella play (honestly, how funny can a cinderella play be haha). As seen in previous parts of the book we see a lot of changes in time, the expression so it goes, and deep description of several situations. I found very important that they mention a turning point in Billy´s life, which was when his father died and Billy stopped living like before: was not in the top of his class anymore, hated life, etc. Certain gaps start filling in throughout the reading of "Slaughterhouse Five" which apparently will continue happening. Lastly, once more I noticed how everybody's life is shaped by the experiences and turning moments that they have had to live due to luck, if there is such a thing.