Sunday 17 April 2011

Things I'd change in Slaughterhouse five - John

To me, Slaughterhouse Five lacks the plot that would have made the book entertaining or simply bearable. Reading a book should be about experiencing a story that enthralls the reader while also relating a message. Though the messages are present within the text, the excitement needed to keep the readers engaged is severely lacking. To allow for a clear though to pass from the author to the reader, a strong plot is needed so that readers are interested in the text, and by extension the messages of the author. By adding suspense or even a climax, we could breath life back into this bland novel. An important part that i would add to the novel has to be an ending. Not a weak, unsatisfying and short ending, but a long and meaningful conclusion that makes you feel glad you've read the entire novel. It should have included something more substantial than just the end of the war, possibly something like what comes afterwards, like a short summary of what Billy plans to do, or even Vonnegut's final thoughts.

Another thing that I'd feel very inclined to change would be the order in which Billy's life events happen. Not anything substantial like rearranging everything into the right order, but just moving a few paragraphs so that Billy's stay in a single memory lasted longer and the readers could make sense of what was actually happening before being transported again to a different time. I know this might interfere with the theme of craziness, but it would be helpful for many readers to grasp the situation before Billy once again leaves for a different time.

Anyways, the novel is fine as it is now, all the changes that I would make would be small so that people will still perceive the novel in the same way.

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