Billy Pilgrim had a great fall.
All of the prayers mixed with his sins couldn't put Billy together again.
What was the wall that destroyed Billy? War.
Billy Pilgrim a religious man or not? That question is like asking how many licks it takes to get the the center of a tootsie pop, the world will never know.
But. What we do know is that he may not have said exactly what, but Billy believed in something.
There are many times throughout the book where he references Jesus or where he's praying. For example, on page 109, "The flaw in the Christ stories, said the visitor from outer space, was that Christ, who didn't look like much, was actually the Son of the Most Powerful Being in the Universe."
Although he refers to God and Jesus by name throughout the book, notice how he doesn't call this being God here.
Or on page 209, Billy's reoccurring prayer, "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to tell the difference."
But here he clearly calls him God. It seems to me as if he's "confused" in a sense. He doesn't know what he wants to believe in. Almost like having one foot into door number one and the other into door number two. It's only a matter of time before both doors close and you're left in the cold. You just can't double dip forever, BP.
Why do you think Kurt Vonnegut chose to give Billy beliefs that strayed from the social norms? Do you think this decision enhanced Billy's character?
Originally, I thought KV made this decision, because he was modeling his own belief system through BP, but after some intense research, I discovered that KV was catholic. So, my second hypothesis was that he chose this, because he wanted to differentiate how unique, for lack of better words, BP was. KV wanted BP to seem like such a nut job that there would be absolutely no question as to if he had PTSD or not. The answer is very clearly, yes.
Very clever reference to humtpy dumpty! Makes a lot of sense. I believe Vonneguts purpose of his beliefs were definitely a creative decision to build his character. In fact, every little detail was put in place to create the perfect jigsaw puzzle we know as Billy Pilgrim. His religious beliefs are unsteady and so is he. Everything in this book gives you something a little extra to think about.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I agree with you! Although i'm not a fan of this book, I have to give Kury Vonnegut credit for being a genuis!
DeleteI do not think that Billy Pilgrim had a religion. He grew up with a cross on his wall with a man that was punctured with wounds. I think that once BP went through war he realized that religion was just a way to make people not afraid of death. In the book I think there is such a negative view on religion that Billy Pilgrim and Kurt Vonnegut stop believing in the God that is in the bible. It is like in the articles we read for Mrs. Monroe what side is he really on? and how really is the enemy?
ReplyDeleteI really loved how you tied in religion to this book because I totally didn't tale it that way! It's so interesting to think about though because he never did seem so sure on things such as faith, hope, or god. I think he believed there was a greater power, but I felt like he never trusted anything or anyone that much. Especially since some people thought he was crazy, instead of realizing how his story really went.
ReplyDeleteI believe Billy was either 1) atheist or 2) one of those people who claims they have a religion but have never been to church a single day in life. Billy grew up with religion in his life, but most likely abandoned it somewhere down the line (most likely after war or when he became unstuck in time.) When Billy became unstuck in time, he could see his entire life before his eyes, which goes against the idea that a God rules his life. When Billy is able to see how his life plays out, he is taught that he is born with a destiny already set in stone... not a life where sin and prayer provides different paths.
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