The fourth chapter of Slaughter House-Five, continues to show the reader that Billy is a very particular character. The story changes its time scenery various times during this segment of the book.
The chapter begins with Billy being kidnapped the nights his daughter got married. What was very particular about this kidnap was that Billy already knew that it was going to happen and he even made sure to be in the right place on the right time for the arrival of the “aliens”. The following quote appears in the fourth chapter, “Billy now shuffled down his upstairs hallway, knowing he was about to be kidnapped by a flying saucer.”(72) After reading this I asked myself: How did Billy know they were coming for him, and most precisely on that day? Then I realized that the thesis I had implanted last time is actually very close to the real situation. Billy is agonizing and he is just trying to omit the present. Also he is under the effect of substances that may affect his behavior and his mind. In the following citation we can see how this happens, “Drink me, it seemed to say…He had an hour to kill before the saucer came. He went into the living room, swinging the bottle like a dinner bell.”(73) In this part of the novel, Billy drinks and this possibly affects what he sees.
There was a close connection that I found when reading the following, “Out he went, his blue and ivory feet, crushing the wet salad of the lawn”. (75) After analyzing this quote I remembered seeing it before when Billy was in World War Two, when he was freezing as a captive and his feet were also blue. These details are seen in two different time periods, meaning that probably at is all an illusion that has been created by Billy’s mind. I also found another similar example in this chapter. When Billy found himself waiting for the saucer, the narrator mentions the following, “Somewhere a big dog barked.”(76) Then when he is in World War Two, he mentions a similar thing, “Somewhere a dog barked.”(82) That a dog is mentioned in both scenarios, for me it definitely means something. In my personal opinion, this fact supports by thesis that he is actually trying to avoid his reality but as we all know, the world keeps on spinning, and he is probably seeing things in the present that he can’t avoid in his hallucinations because they are so evident.
“Third Law of Motion according to Sir Isaac Newton… This law tells us that for every action there is a reaction which is equal and opposite reaction.”(80) This segment was mentioned when describing how Billy would react by coughing every time the door of the wagon was opened. This reminds of eighth grade when we learned about Newton’s laws. This law at first is a little complicated to understand, but then it all makes sense. In life when you have an adversity you react in a way that is completely the opposite to the situation. There may be feelings of anger and blame, when really it’s just a coincidence or just plain destiny. This line is deeply related to Billy too, because he is reacting to what is happening in his present with his imagination. Something is causing him pain or doubt and trying to avoid it he reacts in the opposite way as if nothing is happening, by living in the past and in the future.
The chapter begins with Billy being kidnapped the nights his daughter got married. What was very particular about this kidnap was that Billy already knew that it was going to happen and he even made sure to be in the right place on the right time for the arrival of the “aliens”. The following quote appears in the fourth chapter, “Billy now shuffled down his upstairs hallway, knowing he was about to be kidnapped by a flying saucer.”(72) After reading this I asked myself: How did Billy know they were coming for him, and most precisely on that day? Then I realized that the thesis I had implanted last time is actually very close to the real situation. Billy is agonizing and he is just trying to omit the present. Also he is under the effect of substances that may affect his behavior and his mind. In the following citation we can see how this happens, “Drink me, it seemed to say…He had an hour to kill before the saucer came. He went into the living room, swinging the bottle like a dinner bell.”(73) In this part of the novel, Billy drinks and this possibly affects what he sees.
There was a close connection that I found when reading the following, “Out he went, his blue and ivory feet, crushing the wet salad of the lawn”. (75) After analyzing this quote I remembered seeing it before when Billy was in World War Two, when he was freezing as a captive and his feet were also blue. These details are seen in two different time periods, meaning that probably at is all an illusion that has been created by Billy’s mind. I also found another similar example in this chapter. When Billy found himself waiting for the saucer, the narrator mentions the following, “Somewhere a big dog barked.”(76) Then when he is in World War Two, he mentions a similar thing, “Somewhere a dog barked.”(82) That a dog is mentioned in both scenarios, for me it definitely means something. In my personal opinion, this fact supports by thesis that he is actually trying to avoid his reality but as we all know, the world keeps on spinning, and he is probably seeing things in the present that he can’t avoid in his hallucinations because they are so evident.
“Third Law of Motion according to Sir Isaac Newton… This law tells us that for every action there is a reaction which is equal and opposite reaction.”(80) This segment was mentioned when describing how Billy would react by coughing every time the door of the wagon was opened. This reminds of eighth grade when we learned about Newton’s laws. This law at first is a little complicated to understand, but then it all makes sense. In life when you have an adversity you react in a way that is completely the opposite to the situation. There may be feelings of anger and blame, when really it’s just a coincidence or just plain destiny. This line is deeply related to Billy too, because he is reacting to what is happening in his present with his imagination. Something is causing him pain or doubt and trying to avoid it he reacts in the opposite way as if nothing is happening, by living in the past and in the future.
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