Slaughterhouse Five is a book of timeless and dark hilariously inappropriate humor that is used to send an Anti-War message. The author wrote this novel in such a way that it is still relevant to current Anti-War rhetoric, by including this type of humor and irony throughout the novel he keeps the reader engaged while still expressing his theme. Vonnegut inserts his own experience in world war two throughout the story in order to show that while the Main Character’s story is outlandish and unbelievable it is still loosely based in reality. 

The two most important characters are Vonnegut himself and the fictional driver of the piece: Billy. As such there are three distinct settings within this book: The war, told through Billy’s experience, Post war as seen by Billy, and ‘right now’ (after writing of the novel) from the Author’s point of view. 

Billy's storyline is a symbolic rollercoaster of the impacts of PTSD and unresolved trauma as a whole. As we are introduced to Billy it is clear that his mental state has been affected by something and it is not until almost the end that we are finally let in on the secrets and complexity of the effect the war had on Billy and how this trauma led to his time and space travel along with his years-long contact with an Alien Race: The Tralfamadorians. 

Slaughterhouse-Five is regarded as a modern classic that challenges societal norms in regards to war and trust in our government. Vonnegut uses the Dresden massacre as just one example of our government hiding America's missteps and atrocities in WWII. Slaughterhouse-five encourages the reader to be skeptical of the government and their own perception of events in a turnabout type of way; 'Why is the Dresden massacre classified?' 'Why should children be sent to war?' 'How does war really impact our vets?' are just three examples of the types of questions that Vonnegut inspires through the writing of this novel. 

Vonnegut shows the horror of war through the death of one man; Edgar Derby. The storyline shown through this character is the perfect example of show don't tell—don't talk about how war is horrifying, show it through intense detail of one horrifying story. Derby's character is an allegory for the cruelty experienced by those within the warzone of world war two. When reading this novel I was able to feel the way that the death of Edgar Derby weighed on Vonnegut even decades after he experienced it. He had witnessed so many senseless deaths and useless violence in the war, but the senseless murder of a man over a teacup was just too much for him to ignore.  Though the name Edgar Derby is not real, Vonnegut states in the first paragraphs of the novel that “One guy I knew really was shot in dresden for taking a teapot that wasn’t his.”(1) but he had changed the names of his characters and possibly fictionalized parts of the story.  

Kurt Vonnegut’s storytelling and dark wit has stood the test of time. By not overloading the reader with exact details and droning specifics, the author created a novel with a clear meaning and interesting storylines that allows the book to continue to be read and absorbed by readers some 50 odd years later. Put plainly: War is still war, and war is still wrong. 

Slaughterhouse deserves its title as a modern classic as it encompasses the overtly human longing for a world without war while still accepting the reality that this sort of world is impossible to achieve. While the author is resigned to this reality he still feels the need to express the horrors he witnessed in a fictionalized novel in order to attempt to make a difference.   

Through a confusing and over the top story of overcoming armies, capture, bombing, illness, and eventually alien abduction, Billy's downfall due to traumatic brain injury and untreated PTSD illustrates the true incomprehensibility of war.

Though I read this book at first for a class with a multi-week deadline, I ended up finishing the novel in a two day period. The characters kept me entrenched and the storyline was just ridiculous enough to keep the pages turning. While the novel is full of jokes and irony, the deeper meaning of loss and the destruction of war is clear, the struggle of the characters mixed with the outlandish storylines unnerve and entice the reader at the same time.

I have always loved to read but this book specifically was a bit out of my normal genre; regardless of this the book kept me entertained and ahead of the game for my class! I would recommend this novel to anyone looking for a quick but exciting read that will keep them on the edge of their seat.