Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Intro to Slaughterhouse and Kurt Vonnegut
New York Times - 1969 "Slaughterhouse Five, Or the Children's Crusade" The Atlantic - 2011 "The Neverending Campaign to Ban Slaughterhouse Five" |
Context: WWII and 1960s
Timeline of History: 1960s
Kurt Vonnegut
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Bombing of Dresden: Historical Background
Taken from: http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/teachers_guides/9780385333849.pdf
"By February of 1945, Dresden was one of the few major German cities that had not been bombed in the Allied campaign to break
German morale by targeting entire cities and towns. It had become a major refuge for civilians fleeing the advance of the Soviet
Army across Eastern Europe. It was also the home of American POWs who, like Vonnegut, had been captured during the Battle of
the Bulge. Although there were no obvious military targets in Dresden, allied commanders later suggested that the city was an
important communications link between the German armies in eastern and western Europe. Critics of the raid maintain that the
lack of military significance and the inflated population were reasons not to target Dresden. Some historians suggest that the
fire-bombing of Dresden was ordered as revenge for the V-2 rocket attacks on London late in the war.
The raid was carried out over three days, with the Royal Air Force leading the first wave with incendiary bombs that created a
firestorm in the city. Over the next two days, the American Air Force followed up with strafing raids on the survivors. No accurate
casualty reports exist because of the firestorm, but estimates range from a low of thirty-five thousand deaths (the figure offered by
the Allies) to over one hundred thousand (the figure offered by the Germans). Regardless of the actual number of casualties, the
firebombing of Dresden obviously ranks with the atomic attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki as atrocities of World War II."
Taken from: http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/teachers_guides/9780385333849.pdf
"By February of 1945, Dresden was one of the few major German cities that had not been bombed in the Allied campaign to break
German morale by targeting entire cities and towns. It had become a major refuge for civilians fleeing the advance of the Soviet
Army across Eastern Europe. It was also the home of American POWs who, like Vonnegut, had been captured during the Battle of
the Bulge. Although there were no obvious military targets in Dresden, allied commanders later suggested that the city was an
important communications link between the German armies in eastern and western Europe. Critics of the raid maintain that the
lack of military significance and the inflated population were reasons not to target Dresden. Some historians suggest that the
fire-bombing of Dresden was ordered as revenge for the V-2 rocket attacks on London late in the war.
The raid was carried out over three days, with the Royal Air Force leading the first wave with incendiary bombs that created a
firestorm in the city. Over the next two days, the American Air Force followed up with strafing raids on the survivors. No accurate
casualty reports exist because of the firestorm, but estimates range from a low of thirty-five thousand deaths (the figure offered by
the Allies) to over one hundred thousand (the figure offered by the Germans). Regardless of the actual number of casualties, the
firebombing of Dresden obviously ranks with the atomic attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki as atrocities of World War II."
Discussion Questions and Activities
Chapter 1
- Locate each time Vonnegut uses the phrase, “So it goes.” What patterns do you notice surrounding its usage?
- Describe the crusades.
- What is the significance of the subtitle The Children’s Crusades? What does this reveal about his attitude towards war? (p. 15)
- “It is so short and jumbled and jangled…because there is nothing intelligent to say about a massacre” (19). What could this structure reflect about Billy Pilgrim’s condition?
- Isolate the two books that the narrator takes to Dresden. What concepts and ideas do the two books present? Why has Vonnegut included them? What do they tell us about the book we are going to read? (p. 20-21)
- What is the meaning of the line, “This one is a failure, and had to be, since it was written by a pillar of salt” (22).
Chapter 2
- What is the significance of Billy Pilgrim’s name?
- Define your understanding of Vonnegut’s term “unstuck in time.” Describe how Billy was “unstuck in time.” Use examples from the story to support your answer.
- What are our initial reactions and responses to Billy’s claims about the aliens? (p. 25-26).
Time according to
Create a pictorial representation of time according to each group. Use pages 26-27 to explain each group's concept of time. |
Billy in war - use pages 32-33.
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Chapter 3
“Among the things Billy Pilgrim could not change were the past, the present, and the future” (60).
Instructions: Find evidence from chapter 3 to support the presence of the following themes. You may use direct quotations or paraphrase the idea in your own words. Indicate the page number for every example.
“Among the things Billy Pilgrim could not change were the past, the present, and the future” (60).
Instructions: Find evidence from chapter 3 to support the presence of the following themes. You may use direct quotations or paraphrase the idea in your own words. Indicate the page number for every example.
Lack of Freewill
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The meaninglessness of life
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Chapter 4
Essential Question: Why has Vonnegut chosen the genre of science fiction?
Activities and Handout
Essential Question: Why has Vonnegut chosen the genre of science fiction?
Activities and Handout
chapter_4_handout.docx | |
File Size: | 726 kb |
File Type: | docx |
Chapter 5
chapter_5_handout.docx | |
File Size: | 78 kb |
File Type: | docx |
Character Profiles: Lazzaro and Derby
Activity: Create character profiles for Paul Lazzaro and poor old Edgar Derby. In your groups, you must decide how you will present this information. It could be in the form of a chart, a mind map, or something else. Your information must be laid out in such a way that another group can read it and study from it.
You must decide what is the important information to include in the character profile. Ideas include:
You must decide what is the important information to include in the character profile. Ideas include:
- Physical descriptions
- Attitude and emotional disposition
- Significant quotations
- *Required* For each character, you must include a section that compares him with another character
Paul Lazzaro (chapter 6) with Azar (TTTC)
Poor old Edgar Derby with Howard W. Campbell (chapter 8)
paul_lazzaro_-_character_profile.docx | |
File Size: | 16 kb |
File Type: | docx |
Symbols and metaphors
- The meat locker
- Trafalmadore
- Billy's coat
- Time travel
concept_mapping_1.docx | |
File Size: | 74 kb |
File Type: | docx |
concept_mapping_3.docx | |
File Size: | 140 kb |
File Type: | docx |
concept_mapping_things_they_carried.docx | |
File Size: | 149 kb |
File Type: | docx |