This question was hard to answer. Not because I don't think the book is deserving of the title "Cultural Icon," but because Vonnegut and his works are often hard to put into words, or rather - they are hard to put into few words. For this project, I skimmed several books about Vonnegut, and re-read "Slaughterhouse-Five" trying to find that catch phrase, theme or idea that made the answer obvious. It was only after watching an interview with Kurt that I knew what had to happen. I needed to interview Vonnegut and see what he thought about his book being considered a cultural icon. I only had one obstacle: Vonnegut departed this world and even if he's "unstuck in time" he will never be anywhere later than April 11, 2007. So. I set up my Vonnegut mini shrine, poured a glass of wine and conjured Vonnegut in my mind. I would have chain-smoked in his memory, but, I have asthma…and there’s that whole thing with cigarettes and cancer.
Fictitious Interview with Kurt Vonnegut re: Slaughterhouse-Five as a Cultural Icon
Me: Hi Kurt. Great to see you. How are things on Tralfamodore?
Kurt: Peaceful as always. What’s been happening here since I left?
Me: Well, let’s see. There’s this new thing called “Twitter” in which people can “Tweet” their thoughts out to the world in 140 characters or less.
Kurt: (Chuckles): Sounds like dangerous technology – especially if in the wrong hands. I used to say that there’s all this talk about building the information superhighway and new networks. But there was never any talk about what’s happening to this network (taps the side of this head), which is already in place. There’s utter indifference to it. (Shafer)
Me: You always were ahead of your time. Speaking of reckless Tweeting - Donald Trump is now President of the United States.
Kurt: (raises one bushy eyebrow): Oh? How’s that going?
Me: A bit like the scene in Jailbird when, sitting behind a toddler’s steering wheel, Walter Starbuck limousines his way out of jail.
Kurt: Ah, yes. He seems to be in control, but external forces are controlling his future?
Me: (Nods and shrugs) Pretty much. But we’re not here to talk about all that. We’re here to talk about your book, “Slaughterhouse-Five” as a cultural icon.
Kurt: Cultural icon, huh? What are the criteria?
Me: According to my professor, Dr. Annette Lamb, it is defined as “…an object that represents some aspect of culture. In most cases, cultural icons are created at pivotal points in history. Particularly works of satire are most meaningful in a specific place and time...and continues to have meaning hundreds of years after it was originally published.”
Kurt: Hundreds of years! My God, how long have I been gone?!
Me: It’s 2017, so only 10 years, but this story was written 48 years ago, at a pivotal point in history – during the Vietnam War, and a social revolution. And I’d say it’s still just as meaningful today as it was in 1969. It has stood the test of time.
Kurt: (scratching the side of his face, perplexed, and mumbling): And all because Bernie made me go to Cornell.
Me: It’s really quite a story. Do you have any thoughts on why it’s still so popular?
Kurt: I’d rather hear why YOU think it is. I’m still trying to process that Donald Trump is President.
Me: Well. The story is still relevant. In other words, there isn’t much difference between the time period in which you experienced Dresden, the time period in which you wrote “Slaughterhouse-Five” during the Vietman War, and the present time period.
Kurt: Explain. Certainly the world has made progress?
Me: On some levels, yes. But the current of war still flows around the world. Afghanistan is still at war, as is Iraq. Syria is experiencing a Civil War. Terrorist attacks come in all forms and can strike anywhere, anytime. In addition, it looks like the North Korean hot mess known as Kim Jong-Un may start a nuclear war. As you know, in every war, there is senseless killing and it seems that in every generation there is a war. In every war, there are those who are fighting in it, and those who are fighting against it – for peace. In every war, there is distrust of the government. Even though “Slaughterhouse” is more of an antiwar story – it’s still a story about war, and every generation living during a wartime will be able to relate to it. Unfortunately, this is war theme is bound to go on indefinitely. This is good for your book as cultural icon; bad for the universe.
Kurt: I always said that war, violence and killing were absurd. When I went to war in World War II, we had two fears. One was we would be killed. The other was that we might have to kill somebody. And now killing is “Whoopee.” (Interview, 1991.)
Me: So sad, but true. But it brings me to another feature of the book that I believe elevates it to the level of cultural icon - the fact that there is a timeless lesson to be learned in the book. You teach us, as a human race, how to deal with the absurdity of the world we live in, not just war, but the absurd violence and inanity of so many things that happen randomly. (Krasny). But you do all of this with satire and black humor, muting the blows of life with the phrase "So it goes," at the end of a each tragic statement in the book. Some examples are:
"There was so much to see - dragon's teeth, killing machines, corpses with bare feet that were blue and ivory. So it goes" (83).
"And Billy had seen the greatest massacre in European history, which was the fire-bombing of Dresden. So it goes" (128).
Kurt: I saw more than enough senseless tragedy in my earthly life. I had to deal with it somehow. I really don't miss all that. I do hope this book helps others deal with the absurdities of war and violence.
Me: I think it does - and I'm really sorry you went through the horror of Dresden, but I am grateful that you wrote this book. It really is relatable to the reader. Take Billy Pilgrim, for instance. Even though he's "unstuck in time" bouncing from one time period to another, from one world to another, and in no order whatsoever, the reader can relate to him - as the soldier/prisoner of war, as an average upper middle-class optometrist, and even in the alien world of Tralfamadore, the reader never feels alienated (no pun intended) from him. Perhaps it is your genius use of an-
Kurt: Say, you don't have a cigarette, do you?
Me: - INTRUSIVE NARRATOR, making the reader feel like they are being told the story in real life, in real time. It makes the story feel like the present no matter how many years have passed since its publication. And no, I don't smoke, so no cigs.
Kurt: (feeling his shirt pocket for perhaps a misplaced smoke): You know that intrusive narrator was me, right?
Me: I kind of figured. Especially since you kept saying, "That was me." You know what would have been great? If you had been the actual voice narrator in the 1972 film version of "Slaughterhouse-Five."
Kurt: I loved that movie. George Roy Hill did an excellent job of translating my book into film.
Me: The book has also been turned into several stage productions. Liverpool in 1989, Chicago in 1996, New York in 2008, Seattle in 2015. There was even an operatic adaptation in Munich, Germany in July 1996! (Wikipedia.) Your story lives on in so many ways! And in two years, the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library is going to have a year-long celebration for the 50th anniversary of the book!
Kurt (squinting at me): The who is doing what?
Me: The Kurt Vonnegut Memorial...oh...you don't know about this place, do you? It's on Senate Avenue in Indianapolis. It opened in 2011. Here, look. (Show him pics on my phone.) They have a replica of your old study. And there's your Purple Heart. And an unopened pack of Pall Malls your kids found behind a bookcase after you...were gone.
Kurt: Peaceful as always. What’s been happening here since I left?
Me: Well, let’s see. There’s this new thing called “Twitter” in which people can “Tweet” their thoughts out to the world in 140 characters or less.
Kurt: (Chuckles): Sounds like dangerous technology – especially if in the wrong hands. I used to say that there’s all this talk about building the information superhighway and new networks. But there was never any talk about what’s happening to this network (taps the side of this head), which is already in place. There’s utter indifference to it. (Shafer)
Me: You always were ahead of your time. Speaking of reckless Tweeting - Donald Trump is now President of the United States.
Kurt: (raises one bushy eyebrow): Oh? How’s that going?
Me: A bit like the scene in Jailbird when, sitting behind a toddler’s steering wheel, Walter Starbuck limousines his way out of jail.
Kurt: Ah, yes. He seems to be in control, but external forces are controlling his future?
Me: (Nods and shrugs) Pretty much. But we’re not here to talk about all that. We’re here to talk about your book, “Slaughterhouse-Five” as a cultural icon.
Kurt: Cultural icon, huh? What are the criteria?
Me: According to my professor, Dr. Annette Lamb, it is defined as “…an object that represents some aspect of culture. In most cases, cultural icons are created at pivotal points in history. Particularly works of satire are most meaningful in a specific place and time...and continues to have meaning hundreds of years after it was originally published.”
Kurt: Hundreds of years! My God, how long have I been gone?!
Me: It’s 2017, so only 10 years, but this story was written 48 years ago, at a pivotal point in history – during the Vietnam War, and a social revolution. And I’d say it’s still just as meaningful today as it was in 1969. It has stood the test of time.
Kurt: (scratching the side of his face, perplexed, and mumbling): And all because Bernie made me go to Cornell.
Me: It’s really quite a story. Do you have any thoughts on why it’s still so popular?
Kurt: I’d rather hear why YOU think it is. I’m still trying to process that Donald Trump is President.
Me: Well. The story is still relevant. In other words, there isn’t much difference between the time period in which you experienced Dresden, the time period in which you wrote “Slaughterhouse-Five” during the Vietman War, and the present time period.
Kurt: Explain. Certainly the world has made progress?
Me: On some levels, yes. But the current of war still flows around the world. Afghanistan is still at war, as is Iraq. Syria is experiencing a Civil War. Terrorist attacks come in all forms and can strike anywhere, anytime. In addition, it looks like the North Korean hot mess known as Kim Jong-Un may start a nuclear war. As you know, in every war, there is senseless killing and it seems that in every generation there is a war. In every war, there are those who are fighting in it, and those who are fighting against it – for peace. In every war, there is distrust of the government. Even though “Slaughterhouse” is more of an antiwar story – it’s still a story about war, and every generation living during a wartime will be able to relate to it. Unfortunately, this is war theme is bound to go on indefinitely. This is good for your book as cultural icon; bad for the universe.
Kurt: I always said that war, violence and killing were absurd. When I went to war in World War II, we had two fears. One was we would be killed. The other was that we might have to kill somebody. And now killing is “Whoopee.” (Interview, 1991.)
Me: So sad, but true. But it brings me to another feature of the book that I believe elevates it to the level of cultural icon - the fact that there is a timeless lesson to be learned in the book. You teach us, as a human race, how to deal with the absurdity of the world we live in, not just war, but the absurd violence and inanity of so many things that happen randomly. (Krasny). But you do all of this with satire and black humor, muting the blows of life with the phrase "So it goes," at the end of a each tragic statement in the book. Some examples are:
"There was so much to see - dragon's teeth, killing machines, corpses with bare feet that were blue and ivory. So it goes" (83).
"And Billy had seen the greatest massacre in European history, which was the fire-bombing of Dresden. So it goes" (128).
Kurt: I saw more than enough senseless tragedy in my earthly life. I had to deal with it somehow. I really don't miss all that. I do hope this book helps others deal with the absurdities of war and violence.
Me: I think it does - and I'm really sorry you went through the horror of Dresden, but I am grateful that you wrote this book. It really is relatable to the reader. Take Billy Pilgrim, for instance. Even though he's "unstuck in time" bouncing from one time period to another, from one world to another, and in no order whatsoever, the reader can relate to him - as the soldier/prisoner of war, as an average upper middle-class optometrist, and even in the alien world of Tralfamadore, the reader never feels alienated (no pun intended) from him. Perhaps it is your genius use of an-
Kurt: Say, you don't have a cigarette, do you?
Me: - INTRUSIVE NARRATOR, making the reader feel like they are being told the story in real life, in real time. It makes the story feel like the present no matter how many years have passed since its publication. And no, I don't smoke, so no cigs.
Kurt: (feeling his shirt pocket for perhaps a misplaced smoke): You know that intrusive narrator was me, right?
Me: I kind of figured. Especially since you kept saying, "That was me." You know what would have been great? If you had been the actual voice narrator in the 1972 film version of "Slaughterhouse-Five."
Kurt: I loved that movie. George Roy Hill did an excellent job of translating my book into film.
Me: The book has also been turned into several stage productions. Liverpool in 1989, Chicago in 1996, New York in 2008, Seattle in 2015. There was even an operatic adaptation in Munich, Germany in July 1996! (Wikipedia.) Your story lives on in so many ways! And in two years, the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library is going to have a year-long celebration for the 50th anniversary of the book!
Kurt (squinting at me): The who is doing what?
Me: The Kurt Vonnegut Memorial...oh...you don't know about this place, do you? It's on Senate Avenue in Indianapolis. It opened in 2011. Here, look. (Show him pics on my phone.) They have a replica of your old study. And there's your Purple Heart. And an unopened pack of Pall Malls your kids found behind a bookcase after you...were gone.
Kurt: (misty eyed): Well if this isn't nice, I don't know what is. Me: It's probably safe to say that you, yourself, Mr. Vonnegut, are a cultural icon. But we'll save discussion for another day. Unfortunately, I have to conclude this one because I'm trying to finish a major project.. Thank you for your time, and for all the great books and memoirs, and stories you left behind. Your works are helping to make the world a better place. I hope that was your intent? Kurt: I don't think any artist knows why he does anything. It's not that rational. This stuff comes pouring out of us (Interview, 1991). Wow. My own library. It's overwhelming. Are you sure you don't have any cigarettes around here? Me: I'm sure. Kurt: Then why do you have that lighter? Me: I used it to light the candle. Kurt: Well, that's just tragic. Me: (Blows out candle and Kurt fades away) So it goes. |