Symbolism in Slaughterhouse-five

      Symbolism is a major component in understanding the novel. Because of the way Vonnegut writes, its crucial to know what some symbols mean in the deeper meaning. Horses, the tweedy bird, the stars, and specific colors mentioned are extremely important. Also, I noticed that the narrator also sometimes seems like a character in the story. Sometimes, Kurt makes it clear that he himself, speaks of his own experiences at war. This connection shows that the relationship with the novel and its fiction, relates to Vonnegut's personal life. Throughout the book, Kurt places himself as a character in action.
      Next, the horses that we hear about in Dresden are important because the scene where Billy sits in the coffin with the horses attached, is the only time in the novel where it actually mentions that Billy cries. Obviously, the horses don't have a way to understand the war and destruction going on around them, but Billy is like the horses because they both are "innocent victims" of destruction and suffering.
       The tweedy birds in the novel are symbolic as well, because the birds say" pee-too-weet" which doesn't really mean anything. The birds represent the lack of intelligence to say about war. What the birds say, is describing the horror of the bombing.
      The stars in the sky seem like a rather general aspect, but they really do have a big part of the novel, especially because the novel revolves around war. The paper in the novel itself is separated into tiny section of lines of three stars.  The stars are there to create their own scene.
      Lastly, the colors ivory and blue are important in Slaugterhouse-Five, because they represent sadness and loneliness. Billy feels all of these feelings, and this is obvious because throughout the novel it is obvious that Billy is sad because of the war, and the destruction and corruption he is surrounded by constantly.
   

Slaughterhouse-five & war

      The novel itself, revolves around World War II, so automatically, we see that the theme of war is crucial to understand in the story. Not necessarily the World War II itself, but the firebombing of Dresden, definitely shows the "negative war aspects" a reader could saw at the least. With the jump start of the firebombing of the major city/town that the novel takes place in, we know that it will lead us to the other random events of war and destruction that take place throughout. Kurt Vonnegut writes uniquely on how much of an effect war has on Billy''s existence. 
      Billy "day dreams", but really hallucinates about being corrupted and destroyed by war.  For much of the novel, I would read and think to myself, "Is he saying what I think he's saying?", or "Is that about war, or am i thinking to much?". Well, actually I believe i am correct when thinking what i thought could have been wrong. In fact, a good bit of corruptivness is shown very discrete and subtly. An example would be how we don't really notice how different Billy and his son are, until we see Billy walk in on his son and then the two realize they are very distant. This is all cause and effect from Billy being "out of it" from war, and never being stable and steady with his son.
       Overall, corruptivity is swallowing the concept of the novel, because we see here that it obviously changes the way we look and interpret war and its effects. Destruction of War, is a concept shown in Slaughter house-Five, that is not thoroughly explained nor recognized. It must be searched for and then analyzed so that the reader sees the deeper meanings behind it. 

Structure and Plot of Slaughterhouse-five

      Kurt Vonnegut's writing structure in Slaughterhouse-five reminds me of a sophisticated college guy. Even though he makes great points, and is very knowledgeable, if you were to just read his books without noticing what he looked like, a reader wouldn't think that he's a grown man. I think of Vonnegut as one of those perverted, corruptive college guys, who goes to class during the day and makes decent grades, and parties at night with all of his friends. To me, Kurt seems like he has a young but edgy writing style and structure. Also, I feel like his writing doesn't seem to fit his characteristics and physical features. Its almost like Kurt was assigned to write a book in his English class, and spit this out. I would have never thought Kurt was an elder intellectual man, which obviously I was wrong about. I chose to write some about Kurt and his exterior reputation, because I was really shocked when I saw he resembled not a thing of what I thought he would.
      Literally, Kurt Vonnegut writes in a non-traditional way, by depicting Billy's story. He tends to stray away from traditional and typical forms and structure of writing. Vonnegut uses a theme of "time" while incorporating time with the time periods he uses and puts his characters through. An example, would be how Billy keeps reoccurring and going back "in time", while he feels like he is reliving moments from when we fought in World War II. Kurt Vonnegut uses a different type of writing structure where he places the main story of the crisis before the actual event takes place following them.  Even though it is difficult to separate rising from falling action, because we know Dresden is blown up but it really doesn't actually blow up until the end of the novel. The reader could look at this and say that this novel is of mostly rising action. All together, the outline and structure is more like a cause and effect act, and Vonnegut shows these events leading up to one another.

SlaughterHouse-Five & Romanticism

      In Slaughterhouse-five, by Kurt Vonnegut, Romanticism is presented in an absurd way. It is presented in a way where the reader would have to look outside of the box to find. Romanticism in general revolves around imagination, rebelling against society, and nature. In Slaughterhouse-five, the plot revolves around a time period of World War II. Even though the book doesn't have a hero, or an outcome of joy and success, we see prisoners of war who "come out on top". This relates to romanticism because these prisoners of war are rebelling against society, because they are derived of any kind of control they once had. They are more like slaves, and property, who don't have freedom of where they can go and what they can do. The way these prisoners fight themselves out of trouble, is by "rebelling". I figured I would blog about Romanticism because usually a  reader wouldn't really notice that in fact there are romantic aspects in the novel. 
      "It is so short and jumbled and jangles, Sam, because there is nothing intelligent to say about a massacre  Everybody is supposed to be dead, to never say anything or want anything ever again. Everything is supposed to be very quiet after a massacre, and it always is, except for the birds. And what do the birds say? All there is to say about a massacre, things like "Poo-tee-weet?" This quote, from Chapter one of Slaugterhouse-five, is not exactly screaming romanticism at the reader, nor is it easy to notice the romantic aspect, but I have found something worth explaining. Usually, the reader would notice that Sam, the publisher, apologizes for having such a lazy and short written piece on the massacre. A reader would maybe catch the irony of this quote, because no matter what, if you can write anything on a massacre, that it self is an accomplishment. What the reader generally wouldn't pick up from this quote would be the fact that "rebelling against society" is an aspect of Romanticism that is thoroughly presented throughout the story and in this quote. What I define as rebelling against society, could be remotely different from another readers definition. For me, a perfect example would be these prisoners of war, and the ways they act and live about the way they do. In the book, the whole time, these prisoners of war either have rebelled or are rebelling against society. Rebelling against society is war exactly. I haven't finished the book, but from what I have read and gathered, rebelling against society is a major aspect and guidance through out the book, which triggers me to be reminded of Romanticism constantly while reading. 

Age of Reason and Puritanism in The Great Gatsby.

      For the Puritans, God always came first. For Gatsby, it came down the self improvement, getting the ladies, and having money as priorities."Rise from bed at 6:00 a.m., Dumbbell exercise and wall scaling 6:15- 6:30, Study electricity, etc 7:15-8:15, work 8:30-4:30 p.m., baseball and sports 4:30-5:00, Practice elocution, poise and how to attain it 5:00-6:00, study needed inventions 7:00-9:00" (173). 
In the quote above it is showing what Gatsby does in order to self improve, and it also shows us how he will accomplish a "better self". This type of thinking process which is taking place inside of Gatsby's mind shows that Gatsby himself is an example as a whole, of someone who represents Age of Reason.                         
      Romanticism also takes place in the novel as a writing trend which is also expressed by Gatsby. 
Romanticism from what I have collected means not only "love" topics, but that you have everything being perfect and living happily without major problems. In the book, the way Tom Buchanan's lives, (his living style) represents this era because his house is really big and it gives us the stereotypical idea that because he has a nice/big house, that he is rich and happy, unlike Gatsby who has problems getting money, because the money he is getting is being earned at the bootlegging business. 

Puritanism, Modernism, and Realism relations to the Great Gatsby.

      The Great Gatsby in general shows relations and styles of American Literature from Puritans to modernists. Gatsby represents Modernism and Realism as well. The Puritan writing style is focused on a mission to settle in America. In the Great Gatsby, Gatsby's "mission" is to accomplish and ultimately live the American Dream. 
      In the beginning of the novel he isn't really popular, and not very many people know him as "Gatsby", like they do in the end. He is very poor, and Daisy, his gold digger girlfriend, broke up with him because he didn't have a lot of money. He later looks at life from a different point of view, and comes to realization that he is going to change to become more successful and popular. He set a mission for himself that in general said he was going to become rich and happy. This mission he is going to set on, is a mission like the Puritans. 
      Gatsby uses another trend called the "Age of Reason". Age of Reason pretty much means that you think about how the things you achieved were achieved, or in other words, you look back on and notice the ways that you accomplish the things you do. An example of this would be how Gatsby lives by a set and strict schedule. He makes a schedule for himself so he can compete self improvement. "Rise from bed at 6:00 a.m., Dumbbell exercise and wall scaling 6:15- 6:30, Study electricity, etc 7:15-8:15, work 8:30-4:30 p.m., baseball and sports 4:30-5:00, Practice elocution, poise and how to attain it 5:00-6:00, study needed inventions 7:00-9:00" (173). The puritans lived by strict schedules as well because they were solely focused on God that all things had to be done in time and in order so that worship and "God time" was available for how ever long was needed. 


Sadie Spring

Relations between Puritanism and "The Great Gatsby"

        The Puritans believed that people’s morals dictate their actions. I found that in the book I am reading, "The Great Gatsby", there are a few examples of this.
The narrator says, "Whenever you feel like criticizing someone, just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had". I think that this relates to the Puritan beliefs because in general, there will be people with money and people with out it. We as humans tend to judge and treat others differently based on this. If someone has money, they are probably more likely to go to the nicer places, and do the more "high class” like activities, while people who are middle and lower class probably do the bare minimum to be successful and "get by". 
        We believe that in our society you need money to be successful. What we believe dictates what we do. In The Great Gatsby, the narrator believes that what his father told him is true. The reader knows this because he has continued to live by these words, ever since his father told him when he was a little kid. I chose to talk about money for my example, because in the book, the characters are all 20's rich families. (EXCEPT THE NARRATOR), who is poor. (Irony). He believes that the abnormal mind (his own mind), is quick to detect and attach itself to these kinds of characteristics. In conclusion, morals dictate your actions, so what you believe is what you tend to see, and/or live by. 

Sadie Spring

My Life in Symbols

         Of all the things I've been through, and the adventures I've gone on, there are a few symbols that stick out to me, and help make me the person I am today. Not only do these symbols describe me as a person, but they also take me through life, day by day. They help me when I am weak, and keep me going when I am strong. I’ve noticed that through the years that even sometimes my closest friends are not always going to be there for me. An exception to this would be my mom. It’s neat to have the relationship like we do. Best friend? Mom? It just doesn’t usually go together, or even get put in the same sentence. To add on, music and soccer are things in my life that keep a smile on my face, make me love who I am, and the place and people I’m surrounded by.

            Needless to say, my mom is very important to me. Her name is Kelli, and I look up to her, and hope that one day I can be as good of a mother as she is. I hope that I will grow up to be as mature and loving as well. My mom is the best friend a daughter could ask for, and by far one of the greatest people I’ve ever met. She means the world to me, and in even deeper meaning, she’s my reflection. 

           We have that relationship where it is okay to talk to each other about anything and everything, at any time. She listens to me, and she is always willing to help me become a better person. I’m very fortunate to have a mom like her, because with out her I don’t think I would know how to function. She has watched me grow up; she’s seen me at my worst and at my best. We’ve been through it all together, and she is the one person in my life that has not given up on me. Through all of the ups and downs in my life, my mother has managed to stick by my side. Ever since around the 7th grade, I have been getting comments like, "Wow, you and your mother look just alike!", or "That's something your mother would say!" Even though we physically look alike, we also have the same type of personality, sense of humor, and all around same "lifestyle". When ever my mom and I go out to have lunch on Sundays, or go shopping when I don't have too much homework, those are the small things that I will remember forever. Those types of things are the memories that will last a lifetime.  I love my mom immensely and I know she loves me too. We are "two peas in a pod", and I wouldn’t have it any other way.  

           Another thing I would say has made me a better person physically and mentally is playing soccer.  For someone else might just be a sport, but for me it represents my adolescence, and happiness. Ever since I was a little girl, I have played soccer, and I can't remember a time where I thought to my self, "its over". 

            Because I’m in high school, I need to start looking at collages and figuring out what I want to do with my life once I graduate. Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve always wanted to play college ball. Soccer is my passion, and probably 80% of the time, Im thinking about certain games, plays, goals I've scored, ways to get better, certain drills, and even where to buy the next set of cones.  I play on multiple teams and sometimes I have to sacrifice a lot in order for me to play. My friends understand how much soccer means to me, and when I have to text my friends back, "Sorry I can't, I have soccer", when I am asked to do something over the weekend, they understand. Soccer comes before anything and everything except for family. Almost every day of the week, I’m on the soccer field either at a game, practice, tournament, or even just shooting at the net for practice. I play on the EHS high school soccer team also, and I really think that that will help me with my future. Last year, as a freshman, I have had scouts come look at me for college ball. As of now, I feel like soccer will stick with me for the rest of my life, and I feel like I will enjoy every moment I have with it, because I cant play forever. For me, a life with out soccer is a life with out happiness.

            Lastly, music gets me through a hard day, and I appreciate what that the songs can tell me. If you listen carefully, every song is telling a different story. I happen to listen to those stories, as connect them with my own. Little did I know, I do have a lot in common with these "famous" singers, and their artwork. This says something to me; not only are famous people living their dream, but I am living my dream as well. A hobby I have, happens to be singing, and writing music. NO, I am not a good songwriter, but I write to express my feelings. I sing to relive my stress. Music in general, is somewhat like my medicine, and even though I download my music, it's almost like I'm downloading another soundtrack to my life. 

           In someway, shape, or form, I can find a way to relate to almost any type of music. Not only does music make me happy and relieve the stress I have, but also in the big picture it makes a "story" of my life. If a friend were to go through my songs on my computer, they would see a huge variety of genres, songs, and tempos. Im not solely a country girl, but I feel like country songs tell the most stories, and have the most meaning towards me. Sometimes, I will sit in my bed and picture myself as "that girl" being sung about. Besides country, I love listening to "pump up" music, which is mainly what I listen to when I warm up for soccer. Day by day, I never go with out listening to music. 

            To sum it up, I think it's reasonable to say that once I have the things in life that make me happy, no body can stop me. I am who I am, and these few symbols help me to describe myself, and somewhat help paint the tiny pictures to make my life mural in the end.