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The nature of mankind, a look into Billy Pilgrim, Slaughterhouse-Five
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This essay takes a look into the nature of man kind, Billy Pilgrims personality, his attributes, and persona.
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The nature of mankind; Billy PilgrimThe nature of mankind can be described as a vice or a virtue. Vices and virtues are used
to determine whether a character or person has undesirable traits or good and desirable traits. The
nature of mankind can also be seen through how a character: acts, thinks, says, and what the
other characters have to say about said character. In the book Slaughterhouse-five written by
Kurt Vonnegut, the main character, Billy Pilgrim can be described as a week pushover, a very
imaginative man, and a passive person who is able to adapt to situations rather than challenge
them.
To start, Billy is a weak pushover. Because of Billy’s appearance (very thin and tall) and
the way he acted foolishly while on German territory: not being armed, and not even wearing
boots on his feet made him a target to his other companion John Weary. “Saved your life again,
you dumb bastard” “Weary said to Billy in the ditch. He had been saving Billy’s life for days,
cursing him, kicking him, slapping him…” “It was absolutely necessary that cruelty be used
because Billy wouldn’t do anything to save himself.” Billy has no regard for his life and refuses
to stand up to others (page 43) In addition, Billy is not like the other soldiers as he refuses to
commit acts of violence against the enemies. “Billy Pilgrim refuses to participate in willful
violence against enemy soldiers who ridicule him as a coward.” John Weary and Lazzaro
(Billy’s companions) blame Billy for their capture by the Germans and threaten to kill him.
“Lazzaro's pledge to revenge Weary after he dies emphasizes this kind of individual violence as
willful and vindictive.” Billy, however does not seem to be unfazed by this.
Next, Billy is very imaginative. During his time in the war Billy would imagine himself
being kidnapped by a flying saucer that would take him to a planet called Tralfamadore. The
tralfamadores would provide Billy with the concept of nonlinear time. “The saucer was from the
planet Tralfamadore, he said. He was taken to Tralfamadore, where he was displayed naked in a
zoo…” Billy learned from the creatures that lived in Tralfamadore that “when a person dies he
only appears to die. He is still very much alive in the past… all moments, past, present, and
future always have existed, always will exist” (page 33-34) Which explains why Billy did not
seem hazed when seeing the after math of the bombing in Dresden. Furthermore, Billy begins to
question the society that he is apart of. While being taken away to a war prison Billy asks “why
me?” A German prison guard answers him with “Vy you? Vy anybody?” Billy asks the
Tralfamadorian the same question. "Why you? … Why anything? Because the moment simply
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