Kurt Vonnegut, the pessimistic optimist
Kurt Vonnegut, the pessimistic optimist
Kurt Vonnegut is widely regarded as a pessimist, the evidence found within the short stories of Kilgore Trout actually prove the opposite. Kurt Vonnegut is very much an optimist; the proof is in his critique of society. By pointing out the inherent flaws, selfish actions, and destructive tendencies within the human race Vonnegut is hopeful that by reading his stories and contemplating their meaning a light bulb will turn on and prompt an enlightened perspective and conscientious behavior. Not many things within Vonnegut’s life have given him reason to be an optimist, a few of these reasons are widely known facts that Vonnegut himself speaks on in many of his books. One of the most significant influences from Vonnegut’s life on his personal philosophy has been his participation in World War II. To compound this horrible experience, while serving in WWII Vonnegut’s mother became depressed and killed herself with sleeping pills the night before he took leave for a surprise Mother’s Day visit. So it goes. His son Mark’s battle with schizophrenia, his surviving as a prisoner of war, the Allied firebombing that destroyed Dresden; the death of his sister Alice from cancer within hours of her husband's death in a train crash, and many, many other events of the world today all affect this sensitive and contemplative individual in a way that is scarring. And yet, early in Slaughterhouse-Five he reflects on the one great lesson he learned from his graduate studies in anthropology, and that is that no one is bad, disgusting, or ridiculous (8). This view is reflected in his novels, as they all lack a villain, which has been noted by critics (Langen Harris 419). While there are no villains in his books, they are plenty characters who are very human, as attested to by the example Vonnegut gives of Lot's wife (22). When she looks back, this act symbolizes two things for Vonnegut. First, it shows how we are
Kurt Vonnegut is widely regarded as a pessimist, the evidence found within the short stories of Kilgore Trout actually prove the opposite. Kurt Vonnegut is very much an optimist; the proof is in his critique of society. By pointing out the inherent flaws, selfish actions, and destructive tendencies within the human race Vonnegut is hopeful that by reading his stories and contemplating their meaning a light bulb will turn on and prompt an enlightened perspective and conscientious behavior. Not many things within Vonnegut’s life have given him reason to be an optimist, a few of these reasons are widely known facts that Vonnegut himself speaks on in many of his books. One of the most significant influences from Vonnegut’s life on his personal philosophy has been his participation in World War II. To compound this horrible experience, while serving in WWII Vonnegut’s mother became depressed and killed herself with sleeping pills the night before he took leave for a surprise Mother’s Day visit. So it goes. His son Mark’s battle with schizophrenia, his surviving as a prisoner of war, the Allied firebombing that destroyed Dresden; the death of his sister Alice from cancer within hours of her husband's death in a train crash, and many, many other events of the world today all affect this sensitive and contemplative individual in a way that is scarring. And yet, early in Slaughterhouse-Five he reflects on the one great lesson he learned from his graduate studies in anthropology, and that is that no one is bad, disgusting, or ridiculous (8). This view is reflected in his novels, as they all lack a villain, which has been noted by critics (Langen Harris 419). While there are no villains in his books, they are plenty characters who are very human, as attested to by the example Vonnegut gives of Lot's wife (22). When she looks back, this act symbolizes two things for Vonnegut. First, it shows how we are