Kurt Vonnegut Questions and Answers
Kurt Vonnegut
What are the themes of "Report on the Barnhouse Effect" by Kurt Vonnegut? How can I analyze them?
In this, Vonnegut's first published short story, which appeared in 1950, a good-hearted professor develops the psychic ability to destroy weapons even from a great distance away. He goes into...
Kurt Vonnegut
Why is the birth of Heinz's child so important to him in "Adam" by Kurt Vonnegut?
Heinz Knechtmann has lost a great deal over the course of his life. While growing up in a concentration camp, Heinz watched as every member of his family was led away and killed by the Nazis. With...
Kurt Vonnegut
In what genre did Kurt Vonnegut most often write?
Kurt Vonnegut began his writing career as a writer of short stories published in local and national magazines. These stories were primarily of the science fiction genre, and, even though he wrote...
Kurt Vonnegut
What are some study notes for "Unready to Wear"?
In this short story, Dr. Konigswasser has developed a technique that allows one to extricate his psyche/soul from his body and live as a disembodied essence or place it into another body. This has...
Kurt Vonnegut
Choose one of the important literary terms that is most significant in shaping the story "All the King's Horses" by...
Kurt Vonnegut's short story "All the King's Horses" is a satire in which, as literary critic Northrop Frye observes, "irony is militant." And, in this story, the militant irony is also a double...
Kurt Vonnegut
Name a possible symbol in "The Commandant's Desk."
“The Commandant's Desk” is one of the short works included in Armageddon in Retrospect, the first posthumous publication of Kurt Vonnegut's work following his death in 2007. The full collection...
Kurt Vonnegut
In Palm Sunday, what did Vonnegut mean by the word "twerp?"
I came across your question and was intrigued by it. Given that I had not read the work, I wanted to find out what Vonnegut had meant by the word "twerp". I know what I believe it to be, but with...
Kurt Vonnegut
What is the plot diagram of “Report on the Barnhouse Effect”? What is Vonnegut’s social commentary in this story?
Kurt Vonnegut’s “Report on the Barnhouse Effect” actually contains a story within a story, each with a plot that intertwines with the other. Let’s look at how this works. We begin with the frame...
Kurt Vonnegut
The passage on page 19 of Slaughterhouse Five which starts with "There is nothing intelligent to say about a...
It would be helpful to your argument if you could find some references in Kurt Vonnegut's novel to the German V2 rockets which were described as "Hitler's secret weapon." Here is an excerpt from...
Kurt Vonnegut
Write a letter to Dear Abbey explaining your dilemma prior to visiting Catharine. Follow the Dear Abby letter format....
Dear Abby: I have been in love with my childhood sweetheart, Catherine, all of my life. She does not know that I still love her. I am in the Army and I just found out she is getting married next...
Kurt Vonnegut
Analyze this quote: "New knowledge is the most valuable commodity on earth. The more truth we have to work with, the...
I hope that by "analyze" you mean that we should discuss our opinion about the quote. Here's mine. For the most part, I think this is true. Technologically and economically, new truths have made...
Kurt Vonnegut
What do you think is Vonnegut's reason for these digressions? what do you think of the mantra so it goes.
I’m not sure that I agree that Vonnegut is digressing. I think it is more accurate to say that his non-linear narrative style appears to be digressive, when in fact each temporal jump is a...
Kurt Vonnegut
How do people describe Kurt Vonnegut's work?
During his early years (and even now with today's youth) he captured the imagination of the young people and made them truly think about issues they had never before considered. He did this in a...
Kurt Vonnegut
5) in the story Harrison Bergeson, how does the tone of the story change once Harrison appears on the television?
The tone for much of the story before Harrison's appearance is somber, sardonic, and even fatalistic. Equality is portrayed as an established reality, the tone so insistent that we are immediately...
Kurt Vonnegut
themes of Vonnegut discuss the topics or themes of any two of Vonnegut's works.
The notion of "the irrationality of groups" is present in many (or most or even all) of Vonnegut's works, from Slaughterhouse-Five to Hocus Pocus. Groups often believe in things that are both...
Kurt Vonnegut
Can somebody give me a synopsis of the book Slaughterhouse Five including plot points, characterization, setting,...
Kurt Vonnegut Jr. had a menial career in writing by the time he finished and published what would become his most impactful novel, Slaughterhouse-Five. This was his opus and he told everyone who...
Kurt Vonnegut
Can you cite examples from "Cat's Cradle" that show advancements of technology or life with out a family or stong...
Your question about Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle is a little vague, in that I don't know if you mean actual advancements in science or advancements in science in the setting of the novel. The work uses...
Kurt Vonnegut
In the role of Newt, write a letter to Dear Abbey explaining your dilemma prior to visiting Catharine. This is for...
This assignment will seem to force you to become the character of Newt and compose a letter about your predicament and choices. I think that the first thing which needs to be done in such a task...
Kurt Vonnegut
What is a list of Kurt Vonnegut's work and how do people describe it?
Vonnegut’s work is science fiction, humor, satire, political, and absolutely unique. His novels include Player Piano (his first), The Sirens of Titan, God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, Slaughterhouse-...
Kurt Vonnegut
Are these novels - Cat's Cradle, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, The Fountainhead - related? I was thinking of my...
The hero in each of these stories is distinct individualist and dedicated to the pursuit of individuality. While self-knowledge is not part of this pursuit, self-expression and "integrity of being"...