Slaughterhouse-Five
by Kurt Vonnegut
IB English IV HL (2013-14)
Critical Perspectives
•New Historicism
•Mythological/Archetypal
Bell work for
Monday, August 12
 Write at least one paragraph responding to
these questions:

What is the overall effect of the disjointed
time sequence in Slaughterhouse-Five?
 What
(if anything) would the story have
gained if it had been told in a more
conventional (i.e. linear) fashion?
 What
(if anything) would have been lost if
the story had been told chronologically?
Bell work for
Wednesday, August 14


Write at least one paragraph responding to
this question:
Why do you think the book’s subtitle is
The Children’s Crusade?
“Jigsaw” Activity for
Character Analysis in Slaughterhouse-Five
Part 1
• Create your personal written response to the
question in as much detail as possible.
“Jigsaw” Activity for
Character Analysis in Slaughterhouse-Five
Part 2
• Form a group with others who have your same
question number.
• Compare and contrast your answers.
• Take written notes by adding the responses of
other group members to your original written
responses.
• When you are finished, every member of your
group should have detailed notes on your question.
“Jigsaw” Activity for
Character Analysis in Slaughterhouse-Five
Part 3
• Re-form into new groups -- A, B and C – using the
letter on your original question.
• Whoever has notes on Question 1 will first read the
question to the group, and then will “teach”
question 1 to the group by sharing and explaining
all the notes. Meanwhile, group members who
worked on Questions 2 & 3 will take notes.
• Then do the same for Questions 2 and 3.
When you are finished, everyone should have a
complete set of notes for all 3 questions!
Then select a spokesman from your group to report
your final results to the class.
New Historicism
A common tendency in the study of
literature written or set in past/foreign
cultures is to assume that there is a direct
connection between the culture as
presented and the way the culture
really was.
The school of literary criticism known as
“New Historicism” asserts that such a
comparison is impossible, for two reasons:
New Historicism
First, the “truth” of a foreign or past culture
can never be known or established as
unchangeable.
At best, the “truth” is a matter of
interpretation on the part of both the
writer and the reader.
This is most obviously evident in the fact
that the “losers” of history hardly ever
have a voice because only the more
powerful cultures have the resources to
record their history.
New Historicism
Who really knows the whole Nazi story?
Or the Iraqui story?
New Historicism argues that these
unknown histories are just as significant
as the histories of the dominant cultures,
and should be included in any world view.
But since they often contradict “traditional”
(i.e. the winner’s) history, there is no way
to know the ironclad truth.
New Historicism
Second, while the text under consideration
reflects the culture in which it was
written, it also participates in that same
culture.
In other words, its existence changes the
culture that it reflects.
Literature and culture are interdependent;
each helps to create the other. For
example, To Kill A Mockingbird not only
reflects the culture of the South in the
mid-20th century, it also helps to raise
awareness of and change some elements
of that culture.
“Wailing Shall Be in All Streets”
Refer to the article by Kurt
Vonnegut entitled “Wailing Shall Be
in All Streets” in answering these
questions:
“Wailing Shall Be in All Streets”
• What was happening in the world at the time
Slaughterhouse-Five was written? What was
occurring during the time in which the story is set?
• What were some major controversies during the
time the book was written, and when it is set?
• How does this article affect your understanding
and interpretation of the novel?
• In considering this novel, to what degree do you
agree or disagree with the claims that “truth is a
matter of interpretation” and “the text changes the
culture it represents.”
Bell work
Friday, August 16


Write at least one paragraph
responding to this question:
How are Dresden and Tralfamadore
two versions of the Garden of Eden?
Mythological/Archetypal Approach
Mythological, archetypal and psychological
criticism are all closely related. This is
mainly because Freud formulated many
theories around the idea of the social
archetype. His pupil Carl Jung expanded
and refined Freud’s theories into a crosscultural philosophy.
Critics who examine texts from a
mythological/archetypal standpoint are
looking for symbols.
Mythological/Archetypal Approach
Jung said that an archetype is “a figure …
that repeats itself in the course of history
wherever creative fantasy is manifested.”
He believed that human beings are born
innately knowing certain archetypes,
pointing to the fact that some myths are
repeated throughout history by cultures
that could not possibly have come into
contact with each other. Many stories in
Greek and Roman mythology have
counterparts in Chinese and Celtic
mythology, for example.
Mythological/Archetypal Approach
When reading a book looking for archetypes
or myths, critics look for very general
recurring themes, characters and
situations.
Modern filmmakers use these same
archetypes in making movies. By drawing
on those feelings, thoughts, concerns and
issues that have been part of the human
condition in every generation, modern
writers allow their readers to know the
characters in a work with little or no
explanation.
Mythological/Archetypal Approach
Three main points of study:
• archetypal characters
• archetypal images
• archetypal situation
Archetypal Characters
• HERO
a larger-than-life figure whose search for selfidentity results in his own destruction (often
accompanied by the destruction of the society
around him). In the aftermath of the death of the
hero, there is usually progress toward some ideal.
Archetypal Characters
Variations of the HERO include:
• the “orphaned” prince, or the lost chieftain’s
son raised ignorant of his own heritage.
• the scapegoat, an innocent character on whom a
situation is blamed, or who assumes the blame for
a situation, thus removing guilt from the culprit
and society.
Archetypal Characters
• the loner or outcast, a character who is
separated from society due to a physical
impairment or and emotional/psychological
realization that makes him different. Often the
hero is an outcast at some point.
Two common variations of the loner are:
• The underdog, a smaller, weaker character who
usually emerges victorious at the end of the story
• The guilt-ridden figure in search of redemption
Archetypal Characters
• VILLAIN
Male or female personification of evil; often their
malice is unmotivated, or motivated by a perceived
wrong from the past.
• Variations on the VILLAIN include the “mad
scientist” and the bully.
Archetypal Characters
• TEMPTRESS
A female who uses a male character’s desires as a
means of his destruction.
• EARTH MOTHER / GODDESS
Mother Nature, Mother Earth – the nurturing, lifegiving aspects of femininity
• SPIRIT or INTELLECT
The inspiration for works of art or literature; often
unidentified.
Archetypal Characters
• SAGE
Usually an elderly wise man; a teacher or mentor.
Variations of the SAGE include:
• The oracle, or prophet (male or female)
• A stern but loving authority figure
• A wise woman / witch
Archetypal Images
Colors
• Red = blood, anger, passion, violence
• Gold = greatness, value, wealth
• Green = fertility, luxury, growth
• Blue = sky, Godliness, holiness, peace, serenity
• White = purity
Archetypal Images
Numbers
• 3 = Christian Trinity
• 4 = the seasons; the four ancient elements
(earth, air, water, fire)
• 12 = the months of the solar year
Water – the source of life and sustenance;
cleansing; purification; baptism
Fire – ambiguously both protection and destruction;
knowledge; industry
Archetypal Images
Geometric Shapes
Triangle = the Trinity
Circle = perfection, eternity, wholeness
Caves
The womb (source of life); the grave (entrance to the
underworld); the unexplored regions of the human
soul
Yin and Yang
Any pairs of opposites that complement each other;
balance; harmony
Archetypal Situations
Quest
The hero attempts to establish his identity of fulfill his
destiny.
Variations of the QUEST include:
• Selling one’s soul to the devil (Faust)
• The pursuit of revenge
• Descending into the Underworld
Archetypal Situations
Renewal of Life
Death and rebirth; resurrection as seen in the
cycle of the seasons or the phases of the day
(Sleeping Beauty)
Initiation
Coming of age; rites of passage (the first hunt;
weddings; teen angst films)
The Fall
Any event that marks the loss of innocence.
Archetypal Situations
Redemptive Sacrifice
Any voluntary loss, especially the loss of life, that
results in another person’s gaining or regaining a
desired state.
Catalog of Difficult Tasks
The Labors of Hercules.
The End of the World
Warfare; a large battle; a metaphoric fight
between good and evil; Armageddon; the Great
Flood.
Archetypal Interpretation
How does Slaughterhouse-Five fit the pattern
of the “Hero’s Journey?”
Questions
1.
Examine the characters of Billy Pilgrim, Paul
Lazzaro, Edgar Derby and Montana Wildhack and
their situations. What archetypes can you
recognize in these characters?
2.
How does the Tralfamadorian notion of time—
especially their knowledge of how the Universe
ends– suggest a mythic reading of the novel?
3.
Which myths seem to be at work in different
parts of the novel? Which features of the story
(plot, character development, setting, etc.)
remind you of other stories you know?