Kurt Vonnegut

Slaughterhouse Five is about an Optometrist named Billy Pilgrim in New York. When he graduated from school, he enlisted into the army during WWII, later leading him to be a POW in Germany. During that time, he and the other POWs are held in the city of Dresden, which will then later be bombed. After returning from the war, he then gets married and has a daughter. He was then later abducted by aliens after his daughters wedding, and is taken to the planet Tralfamadore. He was also being held observed there with his "mate" Montana Wildhack, an ex adult movie star. While being held there, the aliens taught him about their perception of time and travel. He then returns to Earth, but doesnt actually say anything about his experiences in outer space until he goes on a radio talk show.

I feel like this shows ambiguity because it is said randomly throughout, and it makes all of the points feel weaker. With the way it's sprinkled through, it adds a sense of doubt or "does this really mean all that it means", if that makes sense.

Page 81, "He wasn't liquid anymore. He was stone. So it goes"

"A Tralfamadorian test pilot presses a starter button, and the whole universe disappears. So it goes"

I feel like Vonnegut is trying to talk about ideas like the affects of war and the meaning of life, and does this through Billy's character and his expereinces. Obviously the bombing in Dresden was very traumatizing, and maybe Vonnegut uses things like the alien abduction and Billy's theories on his own death to show ptsd or other mental health side affects of war.

Page 188, "Daddy-" she said tentatively. "Daddy-?" But Billy was ten years away, back in 1958." Billy's wife had just died, and his daughter is trying to gain comfort from her father, but he is "ten years away"

Page 107, "Billy traveled in time back to the veterans hospital again," after had just being captured by a German soldier. I feel like this might show dissociation or possible a split if Billy has BPD.