Five Capitals

Dictionary.com defines dark humor as “a form of humor that regards human suffering as absurd rather than pitiable, or that considers human existence as ironic and pointless but somehow comic.” In Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut, this concept of dark humor is used throughout to convey the actuality of war. By examining all aspects of war, Vonnegut approaches the cruelty of war from a variety of different perspectives in order to craft one, unified thesis about the meaning of war. Kurt…

metaphors and images, I show how the violent "deflowering" of the virginal city reflects the book's larger view that war is a kind of rape or sexual assault. Known as The Florence of the Elbe, Dresden, Germany, became known as one of the most royal capitals in Europe, in which acclaimed architects designed the Zwinger, Hofkirche and Taschenbergpalais. After the German…

Slaughterhouse Five, or the Children's Crusade: a Duty-Dance with Death by Kurt Vonnegut is a science-fiction, anti-war novel that tracks the life of Billy Pilgrim who has become “unstuck in time” and his experiences such as: his time as a hapless soldier to the firebombing of Dresden; his time on the planet Tralfamadore where he was displayed naked in a zoo; and even his own death. These events, rejecting a conventional narrative, are presented in a fragmentary fashion. It is within this novel…

Davis Thalhuber Mrs. Boston AP Language and Composition 8/25/2017 Slaughterhouse Five Essay: Structure (flashback, chronological): The structure of Slaughterhouse-Five is written in a flashback where the main character, Billy Pilgrim, goes back and forth of when he was apart of the bombing of Dresden. Billy Pilgrim has PTSD, in which he goes from his present life of being a successful optometrist while having two children too his past life of joining the army and being captured at a…

nations or groups. War creates a sense of hopelessness, it is a traumatizing experience as it brings death and destruction to loving homes. Kurt Vonnegut is an American writer who is famously known as the author of Slaughterhouse- Five. In the book of Slaughterhouse-Five written by Vonnegut, takes place in the era World War II and introduces a man named Billy Pilgrim, as he was taken as a prisoner of war where he was surrounded by death. The book does an incredible job expressing its theme as…

With influence from Aristotle, St. Thomas Aquinas is said to be one of the most influential thinkers of medieval scholasticism. A man who was once a simple theologian, became the founder of many teachings within the Catholic church. Starting as the youngest son of a family within lower nobility, St. Thomas Aquinas will end his life as an ordained teacher of theology and will have developed ideas of God. Most of his philosophical ideas and teachings come from his search for the existence and true…

The Thirty Years War’s war origins were largely due to religion, although political factors coincided as the war continued throughout the seventeenth century, and so the importance of religion within these wars shouldn’t be overstated as there were other factors interweaving alongside religion. The importance of religion in the Thirty Years War is emphasised through the evolution of new religious denominations appearing during the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, causing friction in Europe.…

Slaughterhouse-Five written by Kurt Vonnegut is not a relaxed read. If this book was not assigned for a class reading, Slaughterhouse- Five would not be a novel I would have considered picking up. The unpleasant flash of red on the book cover is mysterious, but not approachable. The chaotic format is intriguing, but confusing. However, my views on this remarkably written literature piece has changed dramatically as I finished the novel. Kurt Vonnegut’s satirical approach was unlike other authors…

Slaughterhouse Five Should Not Be Banned Tools are important. Hammers, screwdrivers, and drills all help to make improvements. Tools do not necessarily have to be hardware, however. Books, for example, are also tools. Books are some of the greatest tools in education. They relay information, present new ideas, and provide examples of great writing. Although the books that teachers select for classroom use are valuable resources, many people often attempt to ban them from schools. One such book…

events unfold around us, some for better, and others for worse, that no matter how much we believe we affected them, their is no evidence supporting we directly caused them. Kurt Vonnegut did not have free will, and he knew it. His book, Slaughterhouse Five, was a…