Kurt Lewin

In the short story “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut, the author shows what can happen when an individual has the right vision, but does not necessarily understand the right way to go about conveying the right message. This results in the loss of society’s freedom. The story is told based on a visional desire on the way Harrison hopes that the world will be in the future. The reader fully grasps the concept that Harrison is trying to gain equality in the world; that is clear to see. Harrison…

Goal What would society be like if everyone were absolutely and totally equal in every way? What would life be like if no one person was smarter, stronger, or more physically attractive than another person, and was just the same as everyone else? Kurt Vonnegut explores this prospect in his short story “Harrison Bergeron”, as the reader is taken to the year 2081 where every citizen is equal in every way. George and Hazel Bergeron are two citizens living in this society. One night in 2081,…

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.” (Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse Five p. 60) Slaughterhouse Five is an anti-war book written by a veteran named Kurt Vonnegut. The main character is a broken man named Billy Pilgrim. Billy had been captured by the Germans and had to bear witness to the allied bombing of Dresden. According to History.com, “The…

What is one to think when facing a book that seems science fiction on the surface, yet faces the harsh realities of a very real war within World History? Kurt Vonnegut, an American novelist, deals with various interwoven ideas and themes that are so contrasting to one another it is a wonder how he managed to work everything into one novel that spans just over two-hundred pages long. Slaughterhouse-Five is a diverse, intricate work that can be looked at from a multitude of perspectives. For the…

Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five comments largely on the destructive nature of war. Our childlike protagonist Billy Pilgrim was essentially robbed of his innocence due to his drafting into the military. My first thoughts on this novel were about how Billy’s story extends to other soldiers and victims of war. The breaking of men and women’s’ ability to cope with the world extends far past the case of Billy. This is not just an isolated incident, it occurs much more often than most people care…

Human fallibility at its finest: Vonnegut’s view of cataclysm Putting the political agenda aside, Naomi Klein’s idea of a “long for that impossibly clean slate, which can be reached only through some kind of cataclysm” (Klein 21) does not hold true for Kurt Vonnegut. Vonnegut believes that man will never have a truly clean slate as we are inevitably flawed by our own stupidity. Cat’s Cradle is laid out on a bed of well spun lies, courtesy of Bokonon, which is really meant to serve as a mockery…

In Cat’s Cradle, Kurt Vonnegut expands on his humanistic ideals and explores religion in order to analyze the universality of the principals various religions teach. Vonnegut’s presentation of science and religion in a satirical setting serves to illustrate humanities need for these institutions and discuss the full extent of their impact on humanity. Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle uses a fictitious religion, Bokonism, to show how a faith gains its greatest following during difficult times. This…

Slaughterhouse-Five is a remarkable novel written in 1969 by Kurt Vonnegut that displays the hardships of World War 2 through the experiences of the main protagonist Billy Pilgrim. It is a controversial novel that has created multiple perspectives (right and wrong) and one of those perspectives can be obtained in an article titled “Dystopian Cybernetic Environment in Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse five” which is authored by three journalists Babaee, Yahya, and Sivagurunathan. The article…

The exposition of Harrison Bergeron brings us to the year 2081, a time in which equality of wits, physical strength, and every other human trait was the premier value of society. By way of the 211th, 212th, and 213th Amendments to the Constitution of the United States it was thenceforth decreed that all Citizens of the United States were to share a same and like physical appearance, intellect, and degree of athleticism. Taking charge over this totalitarian program was an official of the United…

Poo-tee-weet The most senseless words can have the greatest impact. Throughout Slaughterhouse Five the novel is portrayed as anti-war. I have re-read the ending to this book multiple times in hopes of figuring out the real meaning behind these bird’s chirps. As I began to dig deep thinking about motifs and themes that are common surrounding this book, I realized these chirps have a holistic connection. The art of speech is unique. If you look deeply into it, it comes down to human beings…