Kurt Vonnegut, American Original

In the midst of the Duke Lacrosse case outcome and the furor over Don Imus, very sad news has arrived over the wires. An endearing and important icon of American writing, Kurt Vonnegut, has passed away. He was 84 years old. The literary master wrote such timeless and enduring novels as Slaughterhouse Five, The Sirens of Titan, Breakfast of Champions, God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, Deadeye Dick, and Mother Night. He also wrote such classic short story compilations as Welcome to the Monkey House.

I started reading Mr. Vonnegut's works in high school. At the time, my AP English Teacher compelled us to read Slaughterhouse Five. It was an eye opening experience to me because in the past, we always read the classic works such as Shakespeare, Donne, Broker, Shelley, Fielding, and Wharton, among others. His writing presented a dose of fresh air because it was different and it paved the way for my delving into Post-World War II writers and their insights they brought in their work.

After discussing the works of Vonnegut back in high school, I became a life-long fan of his writing. It did, in its own way, discuss conditions in American society in terms of class, gender, race, society and history.

One specific book that had an impact on me was Breakfast of Champions (1973). This book discussed the irony and impact of the American dream, especially when it had to do everyday Americans in extraordinary circumstances. There were many aspects of the book that influenced me significantly. However, one excerpt that explains conditions in American society still even to this day. In gathering my thoughts for this entry, I re-read the same words once again:

The motto of Dwayne Hoover's and Kilgore Trout's nation was this, which meant in a language nobody spoke anymore, Out of Many, One: "E pluribus unum."

The undippable flag was a beauty, and the anthem and the vacant motto might not have mattered much, if it weren't for this: a lot of citizens were so ignored and cheated and insulted that they thought they might be in the wrong country, or even on the wrong planet, that some terrible mistake had been made. It might have comforted them some if their anthem and their motto had mentioned fairness or brotherhood or hope or happiness, had somehow welcomed them to the society and its real estate.

--Vonnegut, Kurt. Breakfast of Champions. New York: Dell Publishing, 1973: 9.

This relevant passage alerts one to the apparent disparities in the United States. Then, it opened my eyes to the notion that not everything was equal and fair. It also highlighted some aspects that are sorely needed for the nation to heal after a long history of conflict, competition and self-oriented thinking. What was especially important is that Mr. Vonnegut wrote with an empathetic view discussing the disenfranchised and the displaced as a result of the "American Dream".

What is especially noteworthy is that in his striving to be "impolite" in his writing, he specifically wrote with clarity in a no-holds barred fashion. His sense of irony and humor about describing the effects of national culture enlightened readers, like myself, to not ignore the conditions of society. Furthermore, his works invited his audience to discuss them by displaying particular points of view that would in the Bush 43 era of politics seem blasphemous and unpatriotic.

Make no mistake. Mr. Vonnegut served his country. He watched first hand how war devestates societies. Not to mention, he was a long witness to what occurred at home as well. His characters personify his delvings into these important issues and brings them out in the open by mixing the everyday with science fiction. His experiences in the war often outline some of the themes in his novel. As a result, they made excellent fiction that opened a lot of eyes.

Heck, you'd even think that the happenings now occurring during the last six years of the current Administration was more like the trips that Billy Pilgrim took. However, The Manchurian Candidate--another important landmark in American popular culture is a little bit more apropo about this present age.

Mr. Vonnegut's work influenced me as a writer to express myself by using, in terms of the Foucaultian manner, "truth to power". By simply writing creatively about social conditions and its effects on people, one was resisting the way things are by search for different realities. What was especially relevant was the fact that his writings conveyed that it was okay to express one's self by just simply calling things as "one sees it". There is no need to sugar-coat it. All one had to do is to simply call the shots and run with it. That knowledge brought me closer to the power of the written word.

For a shy lady from a plain-speaking family, this was an important note in not only writing what one knows, but to express it clearly through breaking the barriers in terms of thought. He also conveyed that in "breaking the barriers" a writer could use anything in his or her arsenal: humor, anecdotes, irony, among other things. It was okay to mix the personal with the political. And, it encourages a person to make sense of their past and present by discussing how they define a sense of themselves within the larger culture.

That is why I am very sorry that Mr. Vonnegut died. I know that he lived a long and fascinating life. I extend my condolences to his family for their loss. We need more writers like Mr. Vonnegut in today's society in order to keep on deconstructing American culture and putting thoughtful questions of its impact in the minds of the public. His works are another reason why we need not be silent and take things in a complacent light. Through personal expression, we free ourselves from the ties that bind in order to put the truth out there for others to carry on and change the aspects that rip at the fabric of national culture and ideology.

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For another excellent essay on Mr. Vonnegut's passing, step on over to Bripe Klmun's blog. His essay, "RIP Kurt Vonnegut" also sheds light on the writer's work, life and impact.