Vonnegut uses a method of repetition throughout the novel. He uses this style as a tactic to let the reader learn the story little by little and in an unorganized way. He is constantly mixing the order of the moments and different characters appear in different chapters so he is always "playing" with time and people to get his point through to the reader and to mess with him. Every time he mentions a person, restates something that he had already mentioned in the past plus he introduces a new fact. Another thing Vonnnegut does is that he includes and mentions other works in his book to add support to his content.
Other than mentioning songs and rhymes, Vonnegut also mentions other artists, writers, and important people to add to the books tone and mood. The works he mentions obviously relate to the experiences he has lived and is now telling. He also uses them to support his strange ideas and to explain some concepts. For example, he mentions Kilgore Trout and he talks about his science fiction novels which support Billy's ideas about religion and ETs and that's why he is like his number one fan. He also uses a Dresden book to explain some of the things that happened and to give like facts and not just his opinion. "One of the books that Lily had brought Rumfoord was The Destruction of Dresden, by an English man named David Irving." (p. 186) Afterwards, in the book, he gives a small passage of this book and through it he states some facts of the war in Dresden which are useful because they're not opinions but facts so one can get an idea of what happens and the real magnitude of the situation. So Vonnegut uses the inter textual method to get across many points and to give the reader something to relate to so that he gets the point.
jueves, 26 de febrero de 2009
miércoles, 25 de febrero de 2009
Is Revenge Sour or Sweet?
"Anybody ever asks you what the sweetest thing in life is-"said Lazzaro, "it´s revenge." (p. 139)
Revenge is a topic that is constantly seen in life. We even have it injected into our minds from all around us. Role models, books, movies, plays, stories of the past, they all show us revenge and teach it to us. sometimes it is seen as a good thing,as loyalty and honor, other times it is shown as a horrible thing, other times, its just natural. So, what is revenge? Why are humans revengeful? What leads them to revenge? What is the purpose of revenge? Many more questions pop up into my mind and I don't really know how to respond them or even in which way to approach them. Many other topics are also inscribed in our minds in the same way, propaganda makes sure this occurs. So we go around expressing ideas and acting in ways that are not really our own, it is what we infer we should do, and we do it because it is what we think we should do.
To me, how can such a terrible act be such a satisfaction to others? How can revenge be sweet if it only harms others? But then again, I myself have sometimes experienced this satisfaction obtained from revenge, from watching others suffer. Obviously it is not in a big scale, it will just be in a tiny matter or I feel satisfaction because "Karma" is on my side, but the point is still the same. Why do humans have that evil nature in which we can even enjoy somebody else's suffering?
Revenge is a topic that is constantly seen in life. We even have it injected into our minds from all around us. Role models, books, movies, plays, stories of the past, they all show us revenge and teach it to us. sometimes it is seen as a good thing,as loyalty and honor, other times it is shown as a horrible thing, other times, its just natural. So, what is revenge? Why are humans revengeful? What leads them to revenge? What is the purpose of revenge? Many more questions pop up into my mind and I don't really know how to respond them or even in which way to approach them. Many other topics are also inscribed in our minds in the same way, propaganda makes sure this occurs. So we go around expressing ideas and acting in ways that are not really our own, it is what we infer we should do, and we do it because it is what we think we should do.
To me, how can such a terrible act be such a satisfaction to others? How can revenge be sweet if it only harms others? But then again, I myself have sometimes experienced this satisfaction obtained from revenge, from watching others suffer. Obviously it is not in a big scale, it will just be in a tiny matter or I feel satisfaction because "Karma" is on my side, but the point is still the same. Why do humans have that evil nature in which we can even enjoy somebody else's suffering?
martes, 24 de febrero de 2009
War: a Daily Life Matter
"You know- we've had to imagine the war here, and we have imagined that it was being fought by aging men like ourselves. We had forgotten that wars were fought by babies." (p. 106)
When the English colonel says this, he means it. He had been captured for a really long time know and has been disconnected from the outside world. As he says, wars are fought by youngsters, by people who tend to carry on longer and keep going regarding the situation while with older people it is not as easy to do this because of their fiscal uncapability or because of their mental understanding of the situation. However, this english men believes this because he is liveng a rather "soft " side of the war.
Yes, he may be a captive, yes he may have "not seen a woman or a child for four years or more." Yes, he was absolutley isolated from the rest of the world. Yes, there was no hope in escaping and recuperating a life worth living. But it is also true that, yes, he was a "fourtunate" man in the sense that he found himself in a camp where he was well fed, where there were games and ways to spend the time, he had developed some fisical strenghth, he had people to talk to, he had somewhat developed a peacefull relationship with his captors. So yes, he was suffering, but compared to the other war prisioners, his life was great.
Reading this book constantly reminds us how terrible wars are, how much a prisioner suffers, how much a family suffers, how much the whole country suffers, it reminds us that a war will only bring suffering. Even though he talks about the colonel and how his concentration camp wasnt that bad, Vonnegut also mentions all the other people who did suffer. Those captives who were inhumanly treated till death, those who ended up burned and exploited, those whose lives ended with the war and those whos lives were changed by the war. Those who were walking skeletons, those who were burned to ashes, those who dissappeared, he also mentions all those who suffered.
I wonder why humans are so cruel with one another, and Billy wonders about this to, he even asks the "Tralfamadorian" how it is they live in peace and they tell him to loose all hope since humans will never go away from wars. However, they also let him know that even they, the "peaceful" society as Billy sees them, is not peaceful all the time. That they themselves also go through wars and disasters.
So I wonder, what really are wars for? Why do they exist and what is their purpose, if nothing positive is really extracted from them.
When the English colonel says this, he means it. He had been captured for a really long time know and has been disconnected from the outside world. As he says, wars are fought by youngsters, by people who tend to carry on longer and keep going regarding the situation while with older people it is not as easy to do this because of their fiscal uncapability or because of their mental understanding of the situation. However, this english men believes this because he is liveng a rather "soft " side of the war.
Yes, he may be a captive, yes he may have "not seen a woman or a child for four years or more." Yes, he was absolutley isolated from the rest of the world. Yes, there was no hope in escaping and recuperating a life worth living. But it is also true that, yes, he was a "fourtunate" man in the sense that he found himself in a camp where he was well fed, where there were games and ways to spend the time, he had developed some fisical strenghth, he had people to talk to, he had somewhat developed a peacefull relationship with his captors. So yes, he was suffering, but compared to the other war prisioners, his life was great.
Reading this book constantly reminds us how terrible wars are, how much a prisioner suffers, how much a family suffers, how much the whole country suffers, it reminds us that a war will only bring suffering. Even though he talks about the colonel and how his concentration camp wasnt that bad, Vonnegut also mentions all the other people who did suffer. Those captives who were inhumanly treated till death, those who ended up burned and exploited, those whose lives ended with the war and those whos lives were changed by the war. Those who were walking skeletons, those who were burned to ashes, those who dissappeared, he also mentions all those who suffered.
I wonder why humans are so cruel with one another, and Billy wonders about this to, he even asks the "Tralfamadorian" how it is they live in peace and they tell him to loose all hope since humans will never go away from wars. However, they also let him know that even they, the "peaceful" society as Billy sees them, is not peaceful all the time. That they themselves also go through wars and disasters.
So I wonder, what really are wars for? Why do they exist and what is their purpose, if nothing positive is really extracted from them.
domingo, 22 de febrero de 2009
Slaughter House Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Chapter 1
“I would hate to tell you what this lousy little book cost me in money and anxiety and time.” (p.2)
As I read how the narrator talks about his initial hopes of this book and then how he struggled writing it, I thought of my grandmother. She has always encouraged me to keep a diary of my life, to keep a journal of my trips or simply write what’s on my mind. As a loyal grandmother, she considers that I have really good writing abilities and even better stories and opinions to narrate. I, following my grandmother’s advice, once tried to keep a journal during one of my summer camp vacations. I now consider it a really cute memory as I read through it and once more experience what I was living at the moment, however I also discovered something about myself, I definitely do not want to be a writer when I grow up. Even though I tend to enjoy writing I don’t think I have the ability to actually dedicate my life to it. As I read through my old journal I see how at first I was very excited about it but each day it got simpler, less detailed, and less interesting. Maybe I do have as much potential as my grandmother hopes I do but I really have to work on my writing skills. Even my PSAT scores suggested improving in that are so I guess that is one of this year’s goals: improve my writing skills.
Going back to the text, I agree with the writer regarding that one can have many interesting things to tell and that one might have lived great experiences, that well narrated, can be great written pieces. However, I also support his idea that getting his memories and experiences into words might not be as easy as hoped. From the narrator’s experience, though, a book really did end up existing and even though he might have wasted “money and anxiety and time,” he at least was able to finish it and publish it and got the whole world to know about his experience.
Chapter 2
As I read, I am trying to discover what is the real significance of the “Tralfamadore” in the story. I wonder if it is like a hidden message that the author is trying to get to the reader and that I just haven’t got yet, or of it is literal that Billy Pilgrims´ character believes that he was kidnapped by aliens. It might be a subliminal message that is trying to get to me and that, by the end of the book, I might get. Or maybe it is absolutely nothing. I will keep my mind open to it and see if later on in the book I get to understand what the purpose of including this in the story is.
I also see how society, and his own daughter, react to his statements and it brings me back to reality. Even thought they are different things, this situation can be compared to some current ones like homosexualism, and other opinions and beliefs that are not really accepted by society. Even though many minds have expanded and there is currently more liberty on certain subjects, many are discriminated by their lifestyles and ideals. Big institutions like the Catholic Church are also responsible for this kind of reactions since they themselves react in a discriminating way. I think that it is very sad the way in which the people around Billy Pilgrim react to his stories but then I think about it in current context and I realized that today, the same thing would probably end up happening. He would be considered a wacko and sent to some asylum or if he is allowed to stay at home with his family, I am sure many would have prevented his publication of stories.
Chapter 3
“GOD GRANT ME THE SERENITY TO ACCEPT THE THINGS I CANNOT CHANGE, COURAGE TO CHANGE THE THINGS I CAN, AND WISDOM ALWAYS TO TELL THE DIFFERENCE. “(p.60)
This prayer is on Billy’s office’s wall. I believe this was quite a smart move, he reads it every day and that way ensures that he will do all that is possible to keep true to it. Even as I read it, I myself, hope that I too will be granted the ability to differentiate such things and act accordingly to each. This is a very direct prayer and I believe it is self explanatory. In life there are things that one will never be able to change no matter how hard you try. You might be able to change your perspective on it but never the thing itself. In these cases it is important to just accept these conditions and instead of fighting against them and suffering in life, just accept them and take advantage of them. One must find a way in which this unchangeable factor helps or supports and use it in a beneficial way. However, there are other things in life that can definitely be changed, it might not be easy, but it is absolutely possible. It is also probable that it in these cases you don’t find an immediate solution but with time and patience and perseverance, one can accomplish what is needed. This can help you turn bad thing into good ones and it can help you live your life as it should be. An example of a slow, but accomplished change that was seen in life was the equality of men and woman, and of blacks and whites. Even though one individual may not accomplish this on its own, many people, standing together can accomplish much, just like it has been shown in the past. This may also regard to simpler subjects and decisions, to personal ideals and perspectives, which can change one individual’s life. But the last part of this statement is the most important, one must learn to differentiate which things can be changed and which can’t so that time and effort is well spent in something that will be successful. This, however, is the hardest part since one doesn’t always really know what comes next and how one can influence your own life, many people, or even the whole world.
Chapter 4
Time traveling is a technique that that Kurt Vonnegut has been using throughout the book. He uses a technique in which the main character has flashbacks and lets us know about his past. This I think is sometimes very confusing since it is hard to keep track of so many events and try to fit them together at the corresponding moment.
I also think that this strategy is emphasized in a way to tell the reader to take advantage of the present since we many times get lost in our past and future. I think it is OK to enjoy memories and sometimes rest upon them, and that it is also OK to have dreams to lead you to a great future, but most importantly, I think one must enjoy the moment. This is important because otherwise it is hard to enjoy life since you cannot make new happy memories or you can’t base your future on something, you just live in a fantasy and you might never be able to get back from it. I think the author is trying to tell us that we should enjoy and exploit the current moment because it is filled with emotions, thoughts, and actions that will get you somewhere in life and will guarantee your current happiness and satisfaction.
The main character is also able to travel in time to the future, later on in the book when he is lost in time he remembers a moment during his honeymoon when he lets her wife know he likes her just the way she is but he only does this because he already knows what their future together will be like. " He had already seen a lot of their marriage, thanks to time-travel, knew that it was going to be at least bearable all the way." (p. 120) If we were all able to do this, many people would be able to avoid making many of the mistakes they do in life, they would be able to prevent taking some actions and would make sure to make some others. I wonder what it would be to live in a way that one already knows what will happen and no longer have many surprises. I wonder if this is one of the reasons why Billy didn't like his life that much, it was a solved mystery to him, while the rest of us are constantly wondering what will come next and how we will go on. Because of this it might be that Billy is always lost in time, he doesn't care if it is the past, the future, or the present to him, since they are practically all the same to him, he can visit either one any time he wants. We, as humans, instead do not have that opportunity and that is why the author tries to emphasize the fact that we should enjoy our present and live it as best we can without getting lost in our past and futures.
“I would hate to tell you what this lousy little book cost me in money and anxiety and time.” (p.2)
As I read how the narrator talks about his initial hopes of this book and then how he struggled writing it, I thought of my grandmother. She has always encouraged me to keep a diary of my life, to keep a journal of my trips or simply write what’s on my mind. As a loyal grandmother, she considers that I have really good writing abilities and even better stories and opinions to narrate. I, following my grandmother’s advice, once tried to keep a journal during one of my summer camp vacations. I now consider it a really cute memory as I read through it and once more experience what I was living at the moment, however I also discovered something about myself, I definitely do not want to be a writer when I grow up. Even though I tend to enjoy writing I don’t think I have the ability to actually dedicate my life to it. As I read through my old journal I see how at first I was very excited about it but each day it got simpler, less detailed, and less interesting. Maybe I do have as much potential as my grandmother hopes I do but I really have to work on my writing skills. Even my PSAT scores suggested improving in that are so I guess that is one of this year’s goals: improve my writing skills.
Going back to the text, I agree with the writer regarding that one can have many interesting things to tell and that one might have lived great experiences, that well narrated, can be great written pieces. However, I also support his idea that getting his memories and experiences into words might not be as easy as hoped. From the narrator’s experience, though, a book really did end up existing and even though he might have wasted “money and anxiety and time,” he at least was able to finish it and publish it and got the whole world to know about his experience.
Chapter 2
As I read, I am trying to discover what is the real significance of the “Tralfamadore” in the story. I wonder if it is like a hidden message that the author is trying to get to the reader and that I just haven’t got yet, or of it is literal that Billy Pilgrims´ character believes that he was kidnapped by aliens. It might be a subliminal message that is trying to get to me and that, by the end of the book, I might get. Or maybe it is absolutely nothing. I will keep my mind open to it and see if later on in the book I get to understand what the purpose of including this in the story is.
I also see how society, and his own daughter, react to his statements and it brings me back to reality. Even thought they are different things, this situation can be compared to some current ones like homosexualism, and other opinions and beliefs that are not really accepted by society. Even though many minds have expanded and there is currently more liberty on certain subjects, many are discriminated by their lifestyles and ideals. Big institutions like the Catholic Church are also responsible for this kind of reactions since they themselves react in a discriminating way. I think that it is very sad the way in which the people around Billy Pilgrim react to his stories but then I think about it in current context and I realized that today, the same thing would probably end up happening. He would be considered a wacko and sent to some asylum or if he is allowed to stay at home with his family, I am sure many would have prevented his publication of stories.
Chapter 3
“GOD GRANT ME THE SERENITY TO ACCEPT THE THINGS I CANNOT CHANGE, COURAGE TO CHANGE THE THINGS I CAN, AND WISDOM ALWAYS TO TELL THE DIFFERENCE. “(p.60)
This prayer is on Billy’s office’s wall. I believe this was quite a smart move, he reads it every day and that way ensures that he will do all that is possible to keep true to it. Even as I read it, I myself, hope that I too will be granted the ability to differentiate such things and act accordingly to each. This is a very direct prayer and I believe it is self explanatory. In life there are things that one will never be able to change no matter how hard you try. You might be able to change your perspective on it but never the thing itself. In these cases it is important to just accept these conditions and instead of fighting against them and suffering in life, just accept them and take advantage of them. One must find a way in which this unchangeable factor helps or supports and use it in a beneficial way. However, there are other things in life that can definitely be changed, it might not be easy, but it is absolutely possible. It is also probable that it in these cases you don’t find an immediate solution but with time and patience and perseverance, one can accomplish what is needed. This can help you turn bad thing into good ones and it can help you live your life as it should be. An example of a slow, but accomplished change that was seen in life was the equality of men and woman, and of blacks and whites. Even though one individual may not accomplish this on its own, many people, standing together can accomplish much, just like it has been shown in the past. This may also regard to simpler subjects and decisions, to personal ideals and perspectives, which can change one individual’s life. But the last part of this statement is the most important, one must learn to differentiate which things can be changed and which can’t so that time and effort is well spent in something that will be successful. This, however, is the hardest part since one doesn’t always really know what comes next and how one can influence your own life, many people, or even the whole world.
Chapter 4
Time traveling is a technique that that Kurt Vonnegut has been using throughout the book. He uses a technique in which the main character has flashbacks and lets us know about his past. This I think is sometimes very confusing since it is hard to keep track of so many events and try to fit them together at the corresponding moment.
I also think that this strategy is emphasized in a way to tell the reader to take advantage of the present since we many times get lost in our past and future. I think it is OK to enjoy memories and sometimes rest upon them, and that it is also OK to have dreams to lead you to a great future, but most importantly, I think one must enjoy the moment. This is important because otherwise it is hard to enjoy life since you cannot make new happy memories or you can’t base your future on something, you just live in a fantasy and you might never be able to get back from it. I think the author is trying to tell us that we should enjoy and exploit the current moment because it is filled with emotions, thoughts, and actions that will get you somewhere in life and will guarantee your current happiness and satisfaction.
The main character is also able to travel in time to the future, later on in the book when he is lost in time he remembers a moment during his honeymoon when he lets her wife know he likes her just the way she is but he only does this because he already knows what their future together will be like. " He had already seen a lot of their marriage, thanks to time-travel, knew that it was going to be at least bearable all the way." (p. 120) If we were all able to do this, many people would be able to avoid making many of the mistakes they do in life, they would be able to prevent taking some actions and would make sure to make some others. I wonder what it would be to live in a way that one already knows what will happen and no longer have many surprises. I wonder if this is one of the reasons why Billy didn't like his life that much, it was a solved mystery to him, while the rest of us are constantly wondering what will come next and how we will go on. Because of this it might be that Billy is always lost in time, he doesn't care if it is the past, the future, or the present to him, since they are practically all the same to him, he can visit either one any time he wants. We, as humans, instead do not have that opportunity and that is why the author tries to emphasize the fact that we should enjoy our present and live it as best we can without getting lost in our past and futures.
martes, 10 de febrero de 2009
Blogs
A. What is the difference between a blog and a book?
Blogs give much more liberty and don't really have a specific structure while books are rigid and uptight and must follow certain rules and guidelines. Blogs also assume that the reader knows what one is talking about and just forms a discussion or comment without giving much background information while the book tends to explain much more and give more details. Blogs also show the exact time and date when it was posted and are easier to find. A person that posts a blog does not have to be famous or well known to get others to read their piece, they just post it on the Internet and open the opportunity to see it to everybody, books instead usually have to be famous or well known for many people to read them.
B. How have blogs changed recently?
In the past, blogs used to be only a Link and a few comments on it. Now, however, it offers longer comments, conversations, and discussions and people write down their opinions and their own conversations. Also the writers tend to get more "personal" and write their opinions and beliefs and express their feeling towards a specific topic.
C. Why might you read a blog?
I would read a blog to see other people perspectives. By reading a blog I get involved in a kind of discussion group and get to learn what other people think about a certain topic and that way I get to compare their opinions with mine and i get to understand, agree, or disagree what they have to say. Reading a blog can also give me like a heads up on a topic that I am about to learn or it can also help me get to understand topics I didn't really know about.
D. Is there reason to doubt the objectivity of a blog? Why? Why not?
Yes there is a reason to doubt the objectivity of a blog. One must understand that when you read a blog you are reading a certain persons beliefs and opinions and therefore the person is expressing his point of view and the perspective of the work is not neutral. Even the comments made afterwards are each going to express a position and therefore, one, as a reader, has to be careful and aware that one is reading an opinion and not a fact and that one can use it and interpret it for personal benefit and gain but always remember that it is not an absolute truth.
E. Identify three blogs that mention our summer reading.
Dante's Inferno:
http://fineartamerica.com/blogs/the-divine-comedy-and-dantes-inferno.html
George Orwells 1984:
http://thepenguinblog.typepad.com/the_penguin_blog/2008/04/it-was-a-bright.html
Aldous Huxleys A Brave New World: http://sciencefictionbiology.blogspot.com/2008/09/aldous-huxleys-brave-new-world-is.html
Blogs give much more liberty and don't really have a specific structure while books are rigid and uptight and must follow certain rules and guidelines. Blogs also assume that the reader knows what one is talking about and just forms a discussion or comment without giving much background information while the book tends to explain much more and give more details. Blogs also show the exact time and date when it was posted and are easier to find. A person that posts a blog does not have to be famous or well known to get others to read their piece, they just post it on the Internet and open the opportunity to see it to everybody, books instead usually have to be famous or well known for many people to read them.
B. How have blogs changed recently?
In the past, blogs used to be only a Link and a few comments on it. Now, however, it offers longer comments, conversations, and discussions and people write down their opinions and their own conversations. Also the writers tend to get more "personal" and write their opinions and beliefs and express their feeling towards a specific topic.
C. Why might you read a blog?
I would read a blog to see other people perspectives. By reading a blog I get involved in a kind of discussion group and get to learn what other people think about a certain topic and that way I get to compare their opinions with mine and i get to understand, agree, or disagree what they have to say. Reading a blog can also give me like a heads up on a topic that I am about to learn or it can also help me get to understand topics I didn't really know about.
D. Is there reason to doubt the objectivity of a blog? Why? Why not?
Yes there is a reason to doubt the objectivity of a blog. One must understand that when you read a blog you are reading a certain persons beliefs and opinions and therefore the person is expressing his point of view and the perspective of the work is not neutral. Even the comments made afterwards are each going to express a position and therefore, one, as a reader, has to be careful and aware that one is reading an opinion and not a fact and that one can use it and interpret it for personal benefit and gain but always remember that it is not an absolute truth.
E. Identify three blogs that mention our summer reading.
Dante's Inferno:
http://fineartamerica.com/blogs/the-divine-comedy-and-dantes-inferno.html
George Orwells 1984:
http://thepenguinblog.typepad.com/the_penguin_blog/2008/04/it-was-a-bright.html
Aldous Huxleys A Brave New World: http://sciencefictionbiology.blogspot.com/2008/09/aldous-huxleys-brave-new-world-is.html
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