Free Will In Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five
Slaughterhouse Five is a novel by Kurt Vonnegut who expresses his thoughts on antiwar, social issues, and life through the character Billy Pilgrim and others. Vonnegut uses many examples of social commentary to show the audience the depth of society from an opposing standpoint. In the novel Slaughterhouse five, Vonnegut uses free will to contradict the thought of humans being able to change the future or for it to be predestined. Free will is the power of acting without the constraint of necessity or fate. It is also the ability to act at one's own discretion. Vonnegut talks about many different examples of free will throughout the novel. In chapter 2, Vonnegut's character Billy is traveling from past to present discussing events that has had
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an effect on his life. He states, "Billy was a chaplain's assistant in the war. A chaplain's assistant is customarily a figure of fun in the American Army. Billy was no exception. He was powerless to harm the army or help his friends" (38). This quote tells the reader that he believes he is no good and very unnecessary in the army. The position he holds is someone who helps soldiers with religious purposes, but Billy is preaching to a crowd who doesn’t care for what he's talking about.
The text states, "Had a meek faith in a loving Jesus which most soldiers found putrid"(38). The author states that Billy has a submissive, not very confident belief in Jesus Christ. This creates a conflict because he can't teach to others if he doesn't have a strong belief in it himself. Throughout the novel the author continues to use free will as Billy travels through time. There is no destination or order. Billy's relationship with the Tralfamadorians is a major example of free will. "The most important thing I learned on Tralfamadore was that when a person dies he only appears to die. He is still very much alive in the past, so it is very silly for people to cry at his funeral. All moments, past, present, and future, always have existed, always will exist" (34). The Tralfamadores gives the assumption that you shouldn’t cry or mourn when someone dies because it was destined to happen. In reality humans have emotions which is different from the Tralfamadorians. Humans see the world as if every action that one makes has a consequence. Where the Tralfamadores think that one can create their own
destiny. Vonnegut continues to display many thoughts through the novel. In chapter three, he talks about how change is inevitable. Vonnegut states," Among the things Billy Pilgrim could not change were the past, the present, and the future"(77). He realizes that everything happens for a reason and that he does not have the power to change something that is going to happen or already happened. His fate has already been determined. In conclusion, Vonnegut uses the theme free will to contradict the thought of humans being able to change the future or the future being predestined. He uses others characters to help bring his thoughts to life. Each action that happened in his life happened for a reason which help discover that he is not in control of his life as the Tralfamadores made him believe.
an effect on his life. He states, "Billy was a chaplain's assistant in the war. A chaplain's assistant is customarily a figure of fun in the American Army. Billy was no exception. He was powerless to harm the army or help his friends" (38). This quote tells the reader that he believes he is no good and very unnecessary in the army. The position he holds is someone who helps soldiers with religious purposes, but Billy is preaching to a crowd who doesn’t care for what he's talking about.
The text states, "Had a meek faith in a loving Jesus which most soldiers found putrid"(38). The author states that Billy has a submissive, not very confident belief in Jesus Christ. This creates a conflict because he can't teach to others if he doesn't have a strong belief in it himself. Throughout the novel the author continues to use free will as Billy travels through time. There is no destination or order. Billy's relationship with the Tralfamadorians is a major example of free will. "The most important thing I learned on Tralfamadore was that when a person dies he only appears to die. He is still very much alive in the past, so it is very silly for people to cry at his funeral. All moments, past, present, and future, always have existed, always will exist" (34). The Tralfamadores gives the assumption that you shouldn’t cry or mourn when someone dies because it was destined to happen. In reality humans have emotions which is different from the Tralfamadorians. Humans see the world as if every action that one makes has a consequence. Where the Tralfamadores think that one can create their own
destiny. Vonnegut continues to display many thoughts through the novel. In chapter three, he talks about how change is inevitable. Vonnegut states," Among the things Billy Pilgrim could not change were the past, the present, and the future"(77). He realizes that everything happens for a reason and that he does not have the power to change something that is going to happen or already happened. His fate has already been determined. In conclusion, Vonnegut uses the theme free will to contradict the thought of humans being able to change the future or the future being predestined. He uses others characters to help bring his thoughts to life. Each action that happened in his life happened for a reason which help discover that he is not in control of his life as the Tralfamadores made him believe.