The novel Slaughterhouse Five is written by Kurt Vonnegut. Who tells a mixed up story of a man named Billy and his life traveling through time. In this novel I find that the theme of the book is the significance of fate in life. Vonnegut shows that fate exists; and that its up to the person to handle what life has to offer. .
Most of the action in the story occurs in the small town of Ilium, New York, where Billy, was born. Having grown up in Ilium, he settles there after fighting in World War II. He also becomes an optometrist, marries, and raises two children in Ilium. Germany is another important setting in the book, especially the city of Dresden. During the war, Billy is sent to Dresden, to do hard labor. During his stay, the city is bombed and totally destroyed. Billy, some other Americans, and a few German guards hide in the basement of Slaughterhouse Five during the bombing and manage to escape unharmed. Another important setting in the book is the planet of Tralfamadore, where Billy is taken by aliens. There he is held captive and displayed in a zoo, along with his earthling mate, Montana Wildhack, an american star of pornographic movies. Their room in the zoo is furnished with items from earth and has a dome for a roof so that the Trafalmadorians can spy upon the them. The main character in the novel is Billy Pilgrim. A minor character is Vonnegut, the auther himself, who appears in the novel. In the first and last chapters, Vonnegut tells about himself, the story, and how he wrote it. Vonnegut actually appears as a character in some of the war scenes.
The protagonist of the novel is Billy Pilgrim, a mild man. Even though he becomes a successful optometrist, gets married to Valencia, and has two children, he never has charge of his life. He allows fate to control him and time traveling to lead him. When the Trafalmadorians come to kidnap him, he goes out to meet them, doing nothing to stop his capture.
