Slaughterhouse 5

 Slaughterhouse-5
Guiding Questions: Chapter 1

-In the first chapter, the book blurs the line between fiction and non-fiction.  The author never gives his name, and we do not know just how real of an account this is.  Why is this style important to the ambiguous nature of the opening chapter?


-The author uses a version of a style known as “stream of consciousness” in his narration which basically means writing the way we think.  Random thoughts pop into our heads, etc.  We see this in his repetition of the Yon Yonson song and some of the other stories he tells.  How does this style mirror the narrator’s admissions about how and when he thinks about war?


-The Dresden firebombing killed thousands of people.  The narrator professes little difficulty in describing the death of the man who is crushed by the elevator.  Symbollically, what does this gap represent?  Think about it in regard to number of people, time, age/experience, etc.


-What is the significance of O’hare’s wife’s rant about the men just being babies during the war?  What is her point? Juxtapose your own mental image of war on film vs. war in reality.

Slaughterhouse-Five
Ch. 2

-Explain the literal explanation of the Tralfamadorian view on life and death.  How does Vonnegut justify their views and how do these views affect how their believers address grief?


-Describe Roland Weary physically, mentally, and emotionally.  What kind of person is he?  Why is he in the Army?  What is his job in the Army and why do you think he has it?  What does he hate more than anything?  Juxtapose his view of their situation in Ch. 2 with that of Billy and the Scouts.


-What explanation can you give for Billy’s becoming unstuck in time?  Why do people, in general, choose to reflect and remember things about their lives at certain times?  How does choice, or a lack of choice, affect memory?


-At the very end of the chapter, Roland Weary and Billy Pilgrim have an incident.  Describe what happens and the irony in Roland Weary’s statement to Billy when he says “You shouldn’t even be in the Army!”  What implied message/question does Vonnegut insert into this statement by omission?



Think about how you would finish each of the following statements:

War is...

War is fought by...

War is fought because…

Slaughterhouse-Five
Chapter 3 Study guide

-At the very beginning of Ch. 3, there are descriptions of a German Shepherd, a 15 year old boy, and Adam and Eve.  What common link do all 3 of these things share?  What could Vonnegut’s point be? 


-No matter what time Billy is in, what keeps going on around him?  What do you make of the description of daily events in the 1960’s compared to the description of events during the war, and of death?  Does Billy’s demeanor ever really seem to change?  Does he have emotions?


-What is the point of the former hobo that Billy meets on the prison train?  What does his message about their present circumstances have to do with life? 


-Pay specific attention to the way things are described.  Why does Vonnegut exclude any emotion or feeling, no matter what he is describing?  How is Billy’s life, and Vonnegut’s view on war and life, reflected in his writing style?  How are these things illustrated by the prayer on the wall of Billy’s office?

Ch. 4

The Tralfamadorians:
Explain the Tralfamadorian concept that we are all like insects that are trapped in amber.

Why does Vonnegut include “so it goes” after the sentence about the American prisoners’ clothing passing through poison gas?

The Tralfamadorians answer Billy’s question “Why me” this way:  “There is no why, there simply is.”  What does this mean?  What is the “is” in the statement and how does it apply to life according to Vonnegut?  What about war?








Ch. 5 Study Guide

Explain the Tralfamadorian views of humans and stars that is described in the first paragraph of Chapter 5.  What is the significance of this view?

Why does Vonnegut keep referring to Edgar Derby as doomed and referencing the fact that he will be shot and killed by a firing squad?

Vonnegut seems to be in awe of the English officers at the prison camp.  Is he really, and are we supposed to be?  Explain your opinion and cite specific passages that support or refute this claim.

What does the relationship between the German captors, the English officers, and the American enlisted men resemble in everyday, non-war life?  What does this relationship say about war?

What is the irony in the fact that the British officers are using soap and candles made from the fat of Jews who have been slaughtered? How does this relate to our perception of the officers?

Who is Kilgore Trout?  What is his purpose in Slaughterhouse Five?  Pay special attention to the title and subject of the first book of his that is described, Maniacs in the Fourth Dimension.  Why is it important that his ideas are good, but he cannot write well?

Explain the Tralfamadorian zoo guide’s explanation for the way Earthlings see life.

Explain the passages from the German Ministry of Propaganda.  Why is Vonnegut slamming America so hard in these passages?

Who/what is the purpose of Rosewater?

Ch. 6 Study Guide

Explain the reasoning/significance behind Lazzaro’s attitude toward revenge?  Why isn’t he happy when Dresden is bombed?

Explain the symbolism of the place the American prisoners are taken to live when they reach Dresden.  What does the description say about the spirits of the men?

The German guards in Dresden were expecting tall, cocky, murderous American infantrymen when the train pulled up.  What did they get?

Why do the Englishmen insist that the Americans elect a leader?  Why do the Americans not seem to care?

Study Guide Ch. 7

Explain the Tralfamadorian view that all humans are machines.  Do you agree or disagree?  Support your claim.  (Think about the definition of a machine)

On pg. 157, it says that while he was unconscious, “Billy dreamed millions of things, some of them true.  The true things were time travel.”  What hint at an explanation could this be for Billy’s time travel and for refuting the idea that he is crazy?

What is the best explanation for a real version of “time travel” that we all do?

Why does Edgar Derby burst into tears after eating some of the malt syrup?

This chapter is filled with lots of choppy time jumps in which we see snapshots of Billy’s life.  What does this view of his life approximate, or resemble?