Kurt Vonnegut's Confido

Understanding Important Values in Kurt Vonnegut’s “Confido” “She hadn’t expected it, seldom dreamed of it,” is a common reaction for an ordinary wife who is just finding out that she is about to be rich and famous (Vonnegut 7). Kurt Vonnegut’s “Confido” is a short story that depicts what a normal family encounters when presented with the opportunity of selling an innovative earpiece named Confido that talks to one’s thoughts. Henry Bowers’s invention demonstrates how an idea with so much potential could end up ruining lives if he decides to sell this device. “Confido” uses allegory to present that while the “American Dream” is to be rich, famous and sociable, Confido proves the negative effects of this widely accepted idea. The story demonstrates an analogy when it displays a relationship between the season of summer and Henry’s wife, Ellen’s, life when Confido is presented to her. Vonnegut starts his story by stating, “the summer had died peacefully in its sleep,” and follows it by defining Ellen’s daily life. Ellen is described as a housewife, who once was content with her life, but when Confido is introduced to her she can be compared to the summer and how it suddenly loses its life. Without realizing it, happiness can be …show more content…
The story demonstrates a metaphor when Henry observes the way his family reacts to Confido and compares them to a funeral home. Henry bursts through the door after he gets home from work and says “the breadwinner’s home,” (18) and just moments after states “it’s like a funeral parlor” (19). It is at this moment that Henry’s opinion about the effects Confido has on others changes and he metaphorically describes the scene of their reactions to a funeral home. Henry’s opinion of Confido changes instantly when he understands how disgusting Confido truly is after seeing his family’s upset reaction and decides that being rich does not matter