On page 60, it talks about the prayer framed on Billy's office wall. The prayer asked God to helped him tell the difference between what he can and cannot change. "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom always to tell the difference".
I think this has something to do with the very first sentence of the book- "All of this happened, more or less". My thoughts are, the reason for writing about things that he knows aren't true are his way of changing what he can like the prayer says to do. Perhaps this prayer was the cause for why the book as written the way it was. what do you think the importance of putting the prayer in the book was? And do you also think it was the reason for the structure of the book?
I agree with you on this; the book's structure definitely is great way to make the changes the prayer refers to. As for the prayer's importance, it plays the role of the 'puzzle piece' in which explains the book's structure.
ReplyDeleteI think that Kurt Vonnegut added this to the story to show how he has changed because of the war. After the prayer Yon said this about Billy, "Among the things Billy Pilgrim could not change were the past, the present, and the future" (Vonnegut 60). This quote states all parts of time, meaning that he has no ability to change anything anymore. I wonder if Billy had the same outlook on things before the war, and if war made him feel like there was no way to change what had happened and what will happen to him.
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