Chp 1
What is the name of the major city that got firebombed?
Dresden, Germany
What is the phrase that Billy repeats throughout the novel, AND what is this phrase used in reaction to?
"So it goes" - after any mention of death
What did Billy see in the German soldier’s golden boots?
Adam and Eve
Why don't any of the other POW want to sleep near Billy?
He kicks, screams, and whimpers in his sleep
"Nearly everybody, seemingly, had an atrocity story of something Billy Pilgrim had done to him in his sleep. Everybody told Bill Pilgrim to keep the hell away" (79).
Edgar Derby stealing a teapot and getting executed by a firing squad.
What does Weary call himself and the scouts?
The Three Musketeers ☝️🤓
What were some of the items that the German soldiers took from Weary when he was captured? (name at least 3)
His pistol, his triangular trench knife, an explicit photo of a woman and pony, a mini bulletproof Bible, his combat boots, and later all of his clothes
What does the "bug stuck in amber" represent?
The Tralfamadorian's determinist ideology that no moment can be justified or changed
"'Well, here we are, Mr. Pilgrim, trapped in the amber of this moment. There is no why'" (77)
Vonnegut alludes to the Bible story of Lot's wife. In this story, God destroys a morally corrupt city; as Lot's wife is leaving, she is instructed not to look back at the ruined city, but she does so anyway. What happens to her next?
She is turned into a pillar of salt
What are the names of Billy's two children?
Barbara - marries another optometrist, frequently checks in on Billy
Robert - had trouble in high school. He later joins the Green Berets, which straightens him out and helps him become "a fine young man." He later fights in the Vietnam war (25)
What is the "river of humiliation" mentioned in this chapter?
Tens of thousands of American POWs, including Billy, forced by German soldiers to walk along the road
What does Roland Weary want to happen after he dies, and why?
He wants someone to kill Billy and avenge him, since he blames Billy for his situation/capture
"Above all, he wanted to be avenged, so he said again and again the name of the person who had killed him" (79)
Who did Vonnegut promise to name the novel "The Children's Crusade" for, and why?
Mary O'Hare, so that Vonnegut wouldn't glamourize war
"It was war that made her so angry. She didn't want her babies or anybody else's babies killed in wars. And she thought wars were partly encouraged by books and movies" (15)
Describe the crucifix in Billy's childhood bedroom and its effects on him.
"...he knew a thing or two about gore. Billy, after all, had contemplated torture and hideous wounds at the beginning and the end of nearly every day of his childhood. Billy had an extremely gruesome crucifix hanging on the wall of his little bedroom in Ilium ... Billy's Christ died horribly. He was pitiful" (38)
"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."
This serenity prayer on Billy's office wall reinforces what belief of his?
"Among the things Billy Pilgrim could not change were the past, the present, and the future" (60)
What reason do the Tralfamadorians give Billy for why they kidnapped him specifically?
No reason
"'Why you? Why us for that matter? Why anything? Because this moment simply is" (77)
What is the significance of the birds' question "'Poo-tee-weet?'"
"Everything is supposed to be quiet after a massacre, and it always is, except for the birds. And what do the birds say? All there is to say about a massacre, things like 'Poo-tee-weet?'" (19)
How might Billy’s career as an optometrist be seen as an example of irony?
An optometrist's role is to help others to see clearly.
Billy is mentally unstable and has hallucinations due to trauma from the war-- he's a poor example of someone who sees/views things with clarity
Who is Wild Bob, and how does he act?
An American colonel captured along with the other POWs. He thinks those around him are his "beloved troops" and tries to give them a pep-talk by planning a reunion in his hometown. He dies shortly later in a boxcar 🥀
Who is Lazzaro? Be as detailed as possible.
A car thief from Cicero, Illinois that's in the worst physical shape of any of the Americans. His teeth are rotten and his skin is covered in scars and boils.
He was on Weary's boxcar and "had given his word of honor to Weary that he would find some way to make Billy Pilgrim pay for Weary's death" (84)