Around 1946 Postmodernist literature arose. Writers and thinkers of the time extended the former modernist characteristics to the extreme. A well-known postmodernist author is Kurt Vonnegut. New American Fiction and the Practice of Criticism gave different reasons for Slaughterhouse Five's success.
As society has developed and evolved new literary movements have emerged and died out. Around 1946 Postmodernist literature arose. Writers and thinkers of the time extended the former modernist characteristics to the extreme. A well-known postmodernist author is Kurt Vonnegut. Vonnegut is a writer of many different works including short stories, Broadway plays, essays and novels. Two of his most famous novels are Slaughterhouse Five and Breakfast of Champions. Both works are praised for Vonnegut's unique style and strong morals. Slaughterhouse Five and Breakfast of Champions marked society as Vonnegut used theme and satire to epitomize a true postmodernist novel.
Postmodernism refers to a broad range of sciences that introduced new ideas and evolved concepts of modernism ("Postmodern literature"). A few characteristics of postmodernism include tolerance of all truths, satire, skepticism, blurring the lines of reality, and an emphasis on storytelling. Postmodernism extended modernist ideas while putting out a new look on human nature and the interpretation of texts (Best and Kellner Postmodern Theory 25). Many fields have been impacted by the rise of postmodernist thought, particularly social ideologies. Postmodernism had a major impact on the society. Many postmodernist major themes and ideas such as rejection of absolute truth, and dissolving of borders between high and low culture changed the way people thought and lived. A prose postmodernist writer is American novelist Kurt Vonnegut. Vonnegut's novels and short stories make great examples of postmodernist thought. His works are not only notable for the literature but also its influence on society of the time.
Kurt Vonnegut was born on November11, 1922 in Indianapolis, Indiana. He was the son of a wealthy architect. In 1943 Vonnegut left his studies at Cornell University and enlisted in the U.S. army, where he fought in World War II. On December 14, 1944 Vonnegut became a German prisoner of war following the Battle of Bulge in the Ardennes Forest of Belgium. He was sent to Dresden, a town in Eastern Germany where he worked in a vitamin syrup factory. On February 13, 1945 forces attacked Dresden killing 135,000 civilians. Vonnegut survived the bombings in an underground cellar of a slaughterhouse. Vonnegut's war experience has had a major impact on his writing. War themes such as death and destruction are common in his works. Two famous novels by Kurt Vonnegut include the anti-war novel Slaughterhouse Five and the comedy Breakfast of Champions.
Slaughterhouse Five, Vonnegut's most popular work won great fame after its publication in 1969. The classic combines science fiction elements with an analysis of human condition. The novel is based on Kurt Vonnegut's own experience in World War II. Slaughterhouse Five treats one of the most horrific massacres in European history, the firebombing of Dresden. The protagonist, Billy Pilgrim is captured by German soldiers and is forced to live in a prisoner of war camp. After surviving the attack on Dresden, Pilgrim and the rest of the surviving prisoners of war are left with the job to find, bury, and burn the dead bodies. Pilgrim becomes "unstuck in time" and randomly visits different events in his life. He travels to a distant planet called Tralfamadore and even witnesses his own death. The novel promotes the theme of destructiveness of war. Pilgrim struggles to make a sense out of life forever marked by war's tragedy and horrible war experiences (Sparknotes "Slaughterhouse Five"). Slaughterhouse Five made a forceful statement against war and its damage physically and mentally on a person. Some of Slaughterhouse Five's postmodernist qualities include mixing of fantasy with nonfiction, a clear-cut moral position and fragmented form. A mixing of fantasy and nonfiction is shown in Vonnegut's use of time travel and the Dresden bombing. The clear-cut moral in Slaughterhouse Five is the devastation of war. The novel also possesses a fragmented form. Pilgrim travels uncontrollably to different events in his life and sporadically jumps from one point to another. Slaughterhouse Five had a major impact on society. At the time of the book's publication the Dresden bombing was not a widely known historical event. Slaughterhouse Five helped to increase world awareness of the massacre and the ruin from war (Wikipedia "Slaughterhouse Five"). The novel was also published during US involvement in the Vietnam War. Slaughterhouse Five made a strong attack on the campaign in Vietnam.
Kurt Vonnegut has received a lot of positive criticism in response to Slaughterhouse Five. The popularity of the novel was present all over. In Literary Subversions Klinkowitz believed the popularity was derived from its response to many issues that were vital to the late sixties such as war, ecology, overpopulation, and consumerism ("Slaughterhouse Five" Vonnegutweb). New American Fiction and the Practice of Criticism gave different reasons for Slaughterhouse Five's success. It believes the novel is a prime example of American cultural change and "caught America's transformative mood" ("Slaughterhouse Five" Vonnegutweb). Vonnegut wrote his own identity rather than writing to suit the tastes of high power publishers.
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