In Kurt Vonnegut’s essay “1983: New York,” Vonnegut makes the bold statement of comparing those with addictions, namely alcoholics and gamblers, to those who are “addicted” to the practice of war preparation. He claims that both preparers of war and gamblers alike, “are ravenous for situations that will cause their bodies to release exciting chemicals into their bloodstreams” (297). Even though this may be true, it can be argued that the chemicals released in the body of a war preparer come from something entirely different than an addiction. These people fascinated with the art of war are born with this fixation, unlike those with an addiction, who are able to cure their disease. The feeling that grows inside the war preparer cannot …show more content…
Whether it be alcohol, narcotics, gambling, or any other real kind of addiction, there are solutions to getting rid of them. There are support groups, nicotine patches, and other ways to rid the addiction, both physically and mentally. For chronic war preparers, though, there is no War Preparers Anonymous group every Tuesday, there is no Twelve Step Program, there is no gum that these people can chew to destroy the thoughts of war that invade their minds. A war preparer has no other choice but to live with the way that their brain has operated …show more content…
The addicts are on a plane filled with people who can cure their illness while war preparers fit in with those whose disease is incurable and those deemed unfit for society. Both groups of people have elements about themselves that are wrong, but the latter group’s elements are worse. The war preparers cannot be cured to the sickness that racks their brain, and to call them an addict, much like Vonnegut does, undermines the process addicts go through to help themselves. These people who love the so-called “art” of war are no sicker than a
Junger 125: Through this quote, Junger gives a realistic wake-up call to the readers. Depression and PTSD rates in soldiers are so high because they come back from war, to a society that is at war with itself. Junger concludes that modern society is completely disconnected from our tribal instincts, this disconnection is what leads to PTSD and other mental disorders. This disconnection is shown through the hostility that civilians in America have towards one another, as well as the many statistics Junger provides on a variety of topics.
Analysis of Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five Section One- Introduction Slaughterhouse-Five, written by Kurt Vonnegut Junior, was published in 1968 after twenty-three years of internal anguish. The novel was a "progressive work" after Vonnegut returned from World War II. Why did it take twenty-three years for Kurt Vonnegut to write this novel?
One of the best, most valuable aspects of reading multiple works by the same author is getting to know the author as a person. People don't identify with Gregor Samsa; they identify with Kafka. Witness the love exhibited by the many fans of Hemingway, a love for both the texts and the drama of the man. It's like that for me with Kurt Vonnegut, but it strikes me that he pulls it off in an entirely different way.
Ellis portray New York as a city where it is horrible to live, filled with homeless men,
What does Kurt Vonnegut and June CasaGrande have in common? Both authors don’t have anything in common other than they both are authors, and may disagree. In Vonnegut writing, he states “No one is smarter than anybody else” (Vonnegut) while CasaGrande discuss that “the human brain approaches the task of writing and reading differently” (CasaGrande). Vonnegut and Casagrande reach a concurrence in their writings Harrison Bergeron and A Word, Please: Why is it so difficult to catch or own errors? and share a similar message that brains are different, have different task levels, and thinking levels.
In Vonnegut's novel, Galapagos, the narrator, Leon Trout, attempts to understand humanity's cruelty after witnessing the Vietnam War's brutality and lack of purpose. As a marine in "...a nearly endless, thankless, horrifying, and, finally, pointless war..." (Galapagos 254), Trout struggles to come to terms w...
Satire in American literature has evolved in response to the development of the American mind, its increasing use of free will, and the context that surrounds this notion. Satire is the biting wit that authors (labeled satirists) bring to their literature to expose and mock the follies of society. Satirists can be divided, however, into two groups with very different purposes. One type mocks simply for the enjoyment of mocking. These satirists are found almost everywhere in the world, on every street corner, household, and television sitcom. It is the second type of satirist who is a strong force in the world of literature. The satirical author will mock to heighten the reader's awareness of the problems that threaten to destroy the world that they believe has so much potential. They do this with the hope that their satire will encourage others to better society. "I have often hoped that the arts could be wonderfully useful in times of trouble" (32) says the writer who is perhaps the king of this second type of American satire, Kurt Vonnegut Jr. Vonnegut uses his literature to help guide a disillusioned America, in which free will has been fundamental since the writing of the Constitution. As a humanist, Vonnegut uses the idea of free will as a constant motif in his writing. He believes that every soul has the freedom to do anything, but that the problem with society is that people lack direction. Free will, used as a theme in Timequake, is an enormous responsibility. Acknowledging the free will that one has also involves accepting the responsibility that is necessary to use this privilege in a way that will benefit humanity. In several essay...
War in itself can affect many people in many different ways, wives take on twice the responsibility, and mothers mourn the loss of their child’s innocence. At the time of this novel there had been no research on what happens when you return from war. Kurt Vonnegut in Slaughterhouse-Five touches on how it is to deal with this mental illness before it was diagnosed as post-traumatic stress disorder. The author uses science fiction’s raw intensity to alter Billy Pilgrim’s imagination after he returns from the war. As he is a victim of this undiagnosed mental illness, he uses science fiction’s effect on him as a coping mechanism. Through the experiences of Billy Pilgrim, Kurt Vonnegut explores the powerful impact science fiction had on a vulnerable
Zoroya, Gregg. "In 'The Hurt Locker,' war is like a drug." USA Today n.d.: Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 24 Feb. 2011.
Vonnegut deals a lot with fantasy in his book, Cat's Cradle. From the beginning, he talks about the religion that he follows: Bokonism. This is not a real religion, however he has rules, songs, scriptures, and opinions of a person that practices this fantasy religion. Within his description of this religion however is black humor as well. I think that by him making up this whole religion and an entire island of people who follow it, is in a way mocking today's religion and the way that people are dedicated to their beliefs.
War has been a constant part of human history. It has greatly affected the lives of people around the world. These effects, however, are extremely detrimental. Soldiers must shoulder extreme stress on the battlefield. Those that cannot mentally overcome these challenges may develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Sadly, some resort to suicide to escape their insecurities. Soldiers, however, are not the only ones affected by wars; family members also experience mental hardships when their loved ones are sent to war. Timothy Findley accurately portrays the detrimental effects wars have on individuals in his masterpiece The Wars.
For a novel to be considered a Great American Novel, it must contain a theme that is uniquely American, a hero that is the essence of a great American, or relevance to the American people. Others argue, however, that the Great American Novel may never exist. They say that America and her image are constantly changing and therefore, there will never be a novel that can represent the country in its entirety. In his novel, Slaughterhouse-Five, Kurt Vonnegut writes about war and its destructiveness. Vonnegut tells the story of Billy Pilgrim, an unlikely hero, mentally scarred by World War Two. Kurt Vonnegut explains how war is so devastating it can ruin a person forever. These are topics that are reoccurring in American history and have a relevance to the American people thus making Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five a Great American Novel.
Tim O’Brien served in the Vietnam War, and his short story “The Things They Carried” presents the effects of the war on its young soldiers. The treatment of veterans after their return also affects them. The Vietnam War was different from other wars, because too many in the U.S. the soldiers did not return as heroes but as cruel, wicked, and drug addicted men. The public directs its distaste towards the war at the soldiers, as if they are to blame. The also Veterans had little support from the government who pulled them away from their families to fight through the draft. Some men were not able to receive the help they needed because the symptoms of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) did not show until a year
In conclusion the soldiers use dark humor, daydreaming, and violent actions which all allow an escape from the horrors they had to go through in Vietnam. These coping mechanisms allowed the men to continue to fight and survive the war. They wouldn’t have been able to carry on if it wasn’t for the outlets these methods provided. Without humor, daydreaming, and violent actions, the war would have been unbearable for the men, and detrimental to their lives going forward.
Ernest Hemingway always paid much attention to the conflict between people and the world bringing several challenges to people affecting their physical and emotional state of health rather negatively. Wars are some of these conflicts, changing people’s life and affecting their perception of the surrounding reality. The novel described the in war period, a period characterized by desperation, loneliness, and other feelings experienced by people either directly involved in the battlefield or indirectly taking care for those wounded in the front or simply losing their friends, relatives and beloved persons at war. Psychoanalytic theory was mostly based on the issues experienced by Frederic and Catherine, the major characters of the novel under analysis. People living during that period of time tried to find some form of anesthetics helping them to deal with the cruelty of war and suff...