I've been reading this book called Slaughterhouse Five lately, and just finished it this evening. It's an anti-war book. After I read it, I watched the movie, (which is terrible, don't do both), and I am still having a hard time with the theme of the book.
He uses these symbols like Poo-tee-weet and Colors of Blue and Ivory to describe there's nothing anyone can say about war and the view of death seen by the world?
Main Character, Billy, His life is told in no chronological order whatsoever. Jumping from being abducted by aliens to a planet called, Traflamadore (or something like that), and being put in a zoo for them to see. Then back to the War in Dredson. And then back to his life at home. All different moments in his life?
The aliens teach him something about time. Humans see time as a way to explain things and why they happen? But they teach him that all time is just moments. There is no time. We, humans, in the 3rd dimension cant see it because that's the 4th dimension they see. No one ever dies, in the past or future, they are always alive in moments...
When hes abducted he asks the aliens, Why me? and they tell him that's the thing with humans, they always need to know why. And that they ask why for a sense of comfort. But there is no Why at all in the universe. Its all through moments. Everything happens in moments and everything is fate. That nothing can be controlled, nothing can be prevented, everything will happen because that's the way the moment was set.
Then there's the author, Kurt Vonnegut. Now throughout the book, he talks about Billy in a 3rd person POV. Though through random sentences every couple chapters, is goes to first person talking about Billy, I think that's the author putting himself in it...but why?
Is Kurt Vonnegut Billy?
Is Billy trying to make sense with his life after seeing horrible things in Dredson, by using physiological time travel to different moments?
He does actually go to this planet, that's not psychological, he can see into the future, he knows when he will die, and by always using "So it goes" is he there saying that it doesn't need explaining, and that its just a moment in time that must happen?
As I said, I just finished reading this book earlier, and this will bother me time knows how long until I understand it. If anyone read the book and gets it, post back please.