Comparing Vonnegut's The Wars And Slaughterhouse-Five

Both Timothy Findley’s ‘The Wars’ and Kurt Vonnegut’s ‘Slaughterhouse Five’ delve into extreme detail on the absurdity and tragedy of war and life itself. The books and the characters within are often befuddled, bemused, or held subject to the mad whims of a world that is ultimately apathetic to whether they live or die. Both books utilize their unique narrative structures to emphasize the absurd nature of death, specifically, the meaning of death in wartime. The authors of both stories utilize the effect that the deaths of others have on the protagonists, the selective revealing of information to both the readers and the characters, as well as the beliefs and thoughts of important figures in the narrative to impart two very powerful messages

His life and journey in ‘The Wars’ being characterized by meaningful death and tragedy. To Ross, every death strips him of his innocence. This begins when Rowena dies and Mrs.Ross recognises to Robert that she “knows you’re going to go away and be a soldier.” (Findley 23). Similarly, when Harris dies, Robert acknowledges to himself that “It was the first time he’d truly thought of himself as being a soldier.” (Findley 106). These first deaths are horrible tragedies to Robert, though, he never loses as much of his innocence until he kills with his own hand. He initially is struck and finds that he “could barely move in his panic” (Findley 59) when he has to kill the horse on the boat, but later, becomes more adjusted to killing. Even shocking himself when “He didn’t even know the gun was in his hand until he reached with it to wipe the mud from his face” (Findley 130) after killing the german soldier who “could have killed them all… but he’d relented.” (Findley 131). This culminates in his actions towards the end of his life, when “He got out the Webley, meaning to shoot the animals not yet dead” after the barn is bombed, but instead finds himself at a point where Robert, with no hesitation, shoots Captain Leather “between the eyes” (Findley 184). Each and every individual death has a powerful effect on Robert and on his psyche. He goes from being a caring “guardian” that devoted himself to the innocent Rowena to the point

An individual merely following their suggestion of fate, such as Pilgrim, are the people who don’t amount to anything. The only people who are remembered past their deaths are those who accomplish the extraordinary. These people are the ones who exhibit the most free will, the most resistance and grit in a world that is dedicated to crushing that spirit. These are the people that ‘Slaughterhouse Five’ argues don’t truly exist, telling us from the perspective of the aliens “”. This however, is a sentiment that the characters of ‘The Wars’ stand in strong opposition to. In ‘The Wars’ people become defined by these moments, that is why ‘The Wars’ chooses to open on the scene that leads to Ross’ death. It alters its narrative structure in order to deliberately draw attention to the nature, causes, and purpose behind his death. In the act of beginning at the end, the book becomes not about Ross’ life, but his death. It allows the story to emphasize its central theme regarding