Kurt Vonnegut Essay Example for Free

Kurt Vonnegut Essay Kurt Vonnegut’s novel, Slaughterhouse Five appeared on the list of Time magazine’s 100 all time best English language novels since 1923. Written in 1969, this novel is considered a classic and is also known as one of his best works. Slaughterhouse -Five spans the different time periods of the life of Billy Pilgrim, the protagonist. Vonnegut witnessed the Bombing of Dresden in World War II, and this novel portrays the aftermath of the war. Vonnegut uses time travel as the plot device to portray human conditions from an unusual perspective. He was a prisoner in the Battle of Bulge in December 1944; in Dresden, Germany as a battalion scout. In all likelihood, the bombing of Dresden saved him from being sent to the Auschwitz gas chambers. Vonnegut was among the few survivors that were taken as prisoners to a slaughterhouse during the war and he worked in a meat-locker under this slaughterhouse, making diet supplements for pregnant women . The title refers to the slaughterhouse where Billy stayed as the prisoner of war. Vonnegut combines science fiction elements along with human conditions in the aftermath of the Dresden bombing, to drive the point. Slaughterhouse-Five is the story of a man Billy Pilgrim who has â€Å"come unstuck in time†. This term refers to his surviving a plane crash where he suffers a minor brain damage. Vonnegut has created a satire on fatalism. He believes that no matter how distressing the situation of a man is; he has the power to create his own reality through the sheer power of imagination. Billy Pilgrim experiences different time periods of his life especially his experiences of the World War II. The seemingly random happening of his life structures the thematic elements of the novel in an unraveling order. The novel examines many events in Billy’s life. This includes the death of his wife, his capture by the Nazis in World War II, and the unfortunate bombing of Dresden, which also became the inspiration of this book. The major theme comprises of the narrative that depicts Billy’s difficult times in Dresden, the secondary theme that runs through is his easy and affluent life as an optometrist in the city of Illium, New York, which is a fictional stand-in for Troy, New York, the city of Schenectady, New York. This is the place where Vonnegut has based most of his novels. The fiction runs parallel to the story of Vonnegut’s own transition from the depressing years of 1930’s, which was also the time period when ‘The Great Depression’ occurred, to a well to do existence that followed. The satirical essence of the novel is portrayed by the repetitive phrase, â€Å"so it goes† which Vonnegut uses to describe death and dying; whether it is of man, animal or the bubbles of champagne. He uses it to downplay the fact of ‘mortality’; making it sound humorous and routine. Some would say that his writings are creepy, but the fact is that he wrote beautiful, bizarre and horrifying novels replete with dark humor, and that set him apart as a unique writer. In Slaughterhouse –Five he uses words and phrases such as, â€Å"mustard gas† and â€Å"roses† to describe the rotting smell of a corpse, and the breath of an alcoholic. This novel explores the idea of fate, freewill and illogical nature of human beings. In the first chapter the narrator apologizes about the fact that the novel is so â€Å"short and jumbled and jangled† and then goes on to explain the fact that there is nothing intelligent to say about a massacre. The satirical tone and the dark humor is the alibi, which he uses to describe the horrific aftermath of bombings and war in general. There are three themes that he uses in Slaughterhouse –Five. The first and foremost theme is the- War. He writes about the contrasts of war; which is love, beauty, humanity, innocence, humor etc. In Slaughterhouse –Five just like his many previous novels, he says that war is bad for us and it is better to love one another and live in peace, than have wars. However, she doesn’t use love as the contrast of war, since Billy Pilgrim was not shown as a man who is madly in love with his wife. Yet he chose to depict it in a light yet effective manner. An interesting contrast Vonnegut uses in his novels are differences between the characteristics of men and women. Men are shown as cruel and ready to he engage in war any time, and the females are the shields, playing the shock absorber’s effect capably, as they are always engaged in trying to dissuade men from getting into wars. Women in Vonnegut’s novels are more humane, loving and have strong wills. The most compelling theme is that we as people are like bugs trapped in an amber and there are no â€Å"whys â€Å" to it. In a sequence in the novel, when Billy is trapped in Tralfamadorin Flying Saucer he asks, â€Å"Why me? † â€Å"†¦. Why you? Why us for that matter? Why anything? Because this moment simply is . Have you ever seen bugs trapped in amber? † Billy was asked, and he recalls that he in fact had a paperweight in his office, which was a blob of polished amber with three ladybugs trapped inside it. Billy answers in affirmation and he is told: â€Å" Well, here we are, Mr. Pilgrim, trapped in the amber of this moment. There is no why. † (ibid pg. 76-77). This extraterrestrial experience of Billy is symbolic of the fact that we are physically stuck in this world with no choice over our circumstances. In Vonnegut’s novels there are no set themes or plot that follows the story of heroes, heroines or villains. As Ernest W. Ranly says that all the characters in Vonnegut’s books are â€Å"comic, pathetic pieces, juggled about by some inexplicable faith, like puppets. † (Riley, 1974, pg. 54). Vonnegut himself says in his book Hocus Pocus that if there is no one to take the blame for the bad happenings in the book, it can only mean that the villain is God Himself; â€Å" or Herself or Itself or Whatever† (Vonnegut, Hocus Pocus, 1990). Another significant theme is that there is no soldier, only man. Being a soldier is a myth as a soldier is just a puppet of war used to do as the war demands. He doesn’t remain a human being anymore. Vonnegut expresses this thought most noticeably in this extract from the novel from the time when Billy was imprisoned in Dresden. When the three fools found the communal kitchen, whose main job was to make lunch for workers in the slaughterhouse, everybody had been waiting for them impatiently. She was a war widow. So it goes. She asked Gluck if he wasn’t awfully young to be in the army. He admitted he was. She asked Billy Pilgrim what he was supposed to be. Billy said he didn’t know. He was trying to keep warm. â€Å"All the real soldier are dead. † She said. It was true. So it goes. (Vonnegut 1969. Pg. 159). Another obvious theme is that death is inevitable. It also goes on to explain that life goes on, no matter what happens and who dies. The phrase â€Å"so it goes† occurs one hundred and six times throughout the novel; it happens every time someone dies, to take away the seriousness of death and impart a humorous quality to its inevitable graveness. This book has different meanings for different people, as everyone would be likely to interpret its subtle messages in their own way. The point that Vonnegut wanted to make was that no matter what happens , we should retain our humanity.

The Importance of Hospitality in Ancient Greece versus The Dark Ages Es

In ancient Greek society, the mistreatment of strangers was considered to be a serious offence. Hellenic culture was encouraged to cultivate ethics, an attitude of welcome, and was very proud of its hospitality to strangers. The Greek word for hospitality, philoxenia, literally means â€Å"love of strangers†. Homer might have had such a definition in mind while introducing the theme of hospitality in his epic poem, The Odyssey. His idea correlates with those of his time. I realized in the sixth episode (The Princess and the Stranger) that the reason for such a prominent position on this theme made by the author was due to the importance of this subject in society at a time of strong belief in divinity and superstition. However, in a similar story that takes place in another part of the world, in another period of time, we once again come across the same theme of hospitality. This is the story of Tristan and Isolde, a sweeping tale of love and loss, based on a timeless Celtic myth of star-crossed passion. In both of these timeless classic stories, the main storyline begins when a young, beautiful princess finds a lost, foreign stranger in desperate need of help. Whether it is by providing vital medication for a poisoned wound, or simply providing the necessary tools for bathing and clothing, both these princesses greet these strangers with unquestionable hospitality and generosity, and eventually fall in love with them. After hearing of Odysseus’ bold and courageous adventures, the Phaecian princess, Nausicaa feels compelled to provide him with everything and anything he needs. â€Å"But now, seeing you’ve reached our city and our land, / you’ll never lack for clothing or any other gift†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Book 6, line 210) She then takes him b... ... In terms of storyline, hospitality also plays as a big role on the turn of events and on the direction in which the story takes its main characters. In both tales, it is hospitality that at first invites suffering and predicament, and later concludes the story in irony, the basis of tragic storytelling. Without conflict, a love story is just that, plain and dull. It is the struggle and hardships of others that comforts and entertains us, enabling us to escape the harsh reality that is our lives. Whatever the reason for hospitality, be it a socially acceptable norm due to the circumstances of the times, or for the sake of protection against gods or invaders, hospitality plays a very important role in the two stories The Odyssey and Tristan and Isolde. It portrays the vital aspect in ancient Greek culture, as well as the importance of random acts of kindness.

Night Essay

Compare the hanging of the â€Å"youth from Warsaw† and the hanging of the â€Å"sad eyed angel† and explain, using evidence from there and elsewhere in Night, why Elie Reacted differently to the two hangings. Elie Wiesel’s Night is a memoir of his horrifying childhood experiences of suffering as a Jew in the concentration camps. Eliezer was found to suffer in many camps, and during this time he witnessed the daily sufferings and deaths of many humans. His faith faltered as a result, and after so much pain he grew apathetic to the withering away of mortal life. By the end of the book nothing really surprises Elizer anymore because he knew anything could happen at any moment. However, Eliezer’s reaction towards hanging of the â€Å"youth from Warsaw† was different from the hanging of the â€Å"sad eyed angel. † Eliezer’s faith faltered daily when he witnesses the death of many innocent lives including the hanging of the youth from Warsaw, but he never loses his hope or questions the existence of God until he witnesses the hanging of the â€Å"sad eyed angel. † Eliezer witnesses many death during his time in concentration camps, and he never wept once, even when he witnesses the hanging of the youth from Warsaw. This young boy is described as tall and strong. Supposedly, he had stolen something during the alert in the concentration camp. Looking back at his execution, Eliezer expresses his feeling about the hanging saying that it â€Å"upset him deeply† (Wiesel 62) in a way quite distinct from his knowledge of the thousands who died daily in the camps. Elizer was disturb by the hanging because he did not lost all of his faith and hope, he still have humanity so that’s why he feels upset when he witness people die, deep in his heart faith and hope were just broken, now after witness the hanging of the youth from Warsaw he found the broken pieces of hope that is why that evening after the execution he finds â€Å"the soup tasted better than ever† (Wiesel 63). Another reason that Eliezer finds the soup taste better is because he was actually grateful that it was not him or his father toward the execution. Elizer realize that death is everywhere in concentration camp, and it could be either him or his father next time standing on the gallows. He is thankful that he still alive at that moment and can is still eating his ration of soup, although he knows that he could be in line next to get hang in the gallows. Eliezer also felt the youth from Warsaw brought the death on themselves. He realizes that there are rules in the concentration camp that you can never disobey, if you break the rules in the camp, you will be killed. Where is merciful God, where is He? †(Wiesel 64) It was another day when Eliezer return from work and roll call begins. There were three gallows for three prisoners that are going to be hang on the gallows for conspiring to blow up the electric power station, but among the three prisoners there is a little pipel in the middle, the sad eyed angel. At every hanging, no one in the audience will ever shed a tear or weep, but the hanging of the sad eyed angel affected not only Eliezer but many others. During the execution all eyes were on the child, the two men died immediately, but the child was too light â€Å"and so he remained for more than half an hour, lingering between life and death. † (Wiesel 65) The hanging pained Eliezer so much and it makes him wonder how God can be present in a world with such cruelty, he question the present of God and when he heard a voice saying â€Å"For God’s sake, where is God? † (Wiesel 65) he answers â€Å"Where He is? This is where –hanging here from this gallows†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Wiesel 65). Following the death of the sad eyed angel Eliezer thinks that was the death of God as well. â€Å"That night, the soup tasted of corpses† (Wiesel 65), after witness the hanging of the sad eyed angel Wiesel finds the soup tasted like corpses and also like death, the death of God. The sad eyed angel represent a symbol of silent which God is presents as in the novel Night. God was a symbol of silence in the novel because when Eliezer and the other Jewish people cries out for God’s aid and mercy, their please were left unanswered. The God in Night did not save them from cruelty and death, God has remained silence throughout the novel, so when the angel was hanged Eliezer’s relates the death of angel to the death of God, as he meant that God was hanging upon the gallows and had abandoned them. Eliezer realizes that the Nazis were coming closely to destroy his faith in God and so he was unable to enjoy anything because he thinks that life, hope, and joy could not be reach because all goodness had been destroyed. â€Å"I’ve got more faith in Hitler than in anyone else. He’s the only one who’s keeping his promises, all his promises to the Jewish people† Wiesel 81) Hitler the ultimate evil was conquering the good Jewish people every day through death and destruction. To Eliezer there was no hope for life and no chance for survival. He thinks God had abandoned them because there seems to be no end to evil. After witness the hanging of the sad eyed angel, Eliezer was constantly being reminded of death, he feels like death was everywhere in the camp, and when he were forced to watch the hanging of the sad eyed angel, which appeared to be innocent and full of hope, he feels that he was forced to watch innocence and hope die in front of him. As Eliezer watched the young pipel struggle between life and death he felt that the boy was innocent and he did not deserve to suffer. Eliezer and the young pipel were around the same age, so when he witnesses the hanging of the young pipel he felt as he shared the pipel’s pain and suffering and that he was suffering from a slow painful spiritual death as well. The hanging of the young pipel pained Eliezer so much because he knew he could not rescue him. In Elie Wiesel’s Night the author present a significance of the hanging and the brutal elements of the surroundings in the concentration camp. He express that evening â€Å"the soup tasted better than ever† (Wiesel 63) after he witness the hanging of the youth from Warsaw, and yet after he witness the hanging of the sad eyed angel â€Å"the soup tasted of corpse. † It was trying to present how Eliezer’s slowly loses his hope and faith in God. Eliezer’s faith was being challenged under such brutal condition, and many do not get their beliefs put to the test in such extreme condition as Eliezer did, and this leads Eliezer to question his faith. The meaning of hanging in this novel represent the bad conquers good, death and evil become apparent. The goodness that had been present prior to concentration camp had been destroyed through death, evil and abandonment. Every killing that Eliezer witness deteriorated his faith and finally after witness the sad eyed angel, it was the end of hope for Eliezer, he finally understood the murderous nature of concentration camp, and he could not walk away unaffected by the hanging. At last, Eliezer walked away as a completely different person than how he entered.

Cunto se demora la green card por trabajo

El tiempo de demora de la tarjeta de residencia por trabajo varà ­a desde apenas unos meses de tramitacià ³n ordinaria hasta esperas variables de varios aà ±os. La diferencia radica en la categorà ­a de visa de trabajo por la que se obtiene la tarjeta de residencia. (Y en algunos casos tambià ©n afecta el paà ­s de origen). Categorà ­as en las que no hay espera para la green card por razones de trabajo Cada aà ±o fiscal se conceden 140,000 tarjetas de residencia por motivos de empleo, divididas en diferentes categorà ­as. Las denominadas 1, 2, 4 y 5 no tienen que esperar a que haya visas disponibles, porque el nà ºmero de visados es superior al de peticiones. Pero,  ¿quà © empleos està ¡n comprendidos en esas categorà ­as? Anualmente se conceden hasta un mà ¡ximo de 40,000 visas en la categorà ­a 1. Dentro de esta hay tres tipos de empleos posibles: EB-1 (a), para la crema de la crema profesionalmente hablando. Pueden aplicar por ellas personas extranjeras con habilidades extraordinarias en las Artes, las Ciencias, el Deporte, la Educacià ³n o los Negocios. Son profesionales tan excepcionales que no necesitan tener una oferta de trabajo. Es decir, pueden aplicar ellos mismos por la tarjeta de residencia, sin patrocinador. EB-1 (b), para profesores universitarios o investigadores sobresalientes con al menos de tres aà ±os de experiencia profesional reconocida internacionalmente. Es necesario que tengan una oferta de trabajo y que la solicitud para la tarjeta de residencia la presente una universidad o un instituto, pà ºblico o privado, de investigacià ³n. EB-1 (c), para ejecutivos o gerentes que lleven al menos tres aà ±os trabajando en el extranjero para una filial o subsidiaria de una empresa americana. Tampoco hay tiempo de espera para la categorà ­a 2 (EB-2), para la que hay reservada 40,000 tarjetas de residencia por aà ±o fiscal. Pueden beneficiarse los profesionales con una maestrà ­a o doctorado o, en el caso de tener sà ³lo una licenciatura, deberà ¡n tener cinco aà ±os de experiencia laboral. Tambià ©n encajan en esta categorà ­a las personas con habilidades excepcionales en los Negocios, las Artes y las Ciencias. Es decir, deben ser muy superiores a la media en su campo. Aunque generalmente se necesita una oferta de trabajo y que el empleador solicite la tarjeta de residencia para ellos, hay casos en los que el extranjero que cumple con los requisitos arriba mencionados puede solicitar la green card por sà ­ mismos si puede probar que la aprobacià ³n de su solicitud servirà ­a los intereses nacionales de los Estados Unidos. De hecho, hay abogados especialistas en este tipo de casos que se conocen con las iniciales NIW (por Waiver por interà ©s nacional, en inglà ©s). Otra categorà ­a sin tiempo de espera es la 4 (EB-4), que son conocidos como Emigrantes Especiales. Es necesario que el empleador americano solicite la tarjeta de residencia para ellos mediante la planilla I-360. Pueden beneficiarse por esta categorà ­a: Sacerdotes, monjas, rabinos y otros trabajadores religiosos.Ex trabajadores del Canal de Panamà ¡.Ciertos miembros del Ejà ©rcito de los Estados Unidos.Empleados jubilados de organizaciones internacionales y dependientes.Asimismo, trabajadores en el extranjero del Gobierno estadounidense. En este à ºltimo caso, la peticià ³n de la green card no debe hacerse mediante la I-360, sino que debe utilizarse la planilla DS-1884. Por à ºltimo, los inversores dentro de la categorà ­a 5 (EB-5) tampoco està ¡n sujetos a disponibilidad de visas y espera. Hay que resaltar que aunque no hay tiempo de espera por visas en las categorà ­as arriba mencionadas, hay unos meses de demora en la tramitacià ³n ordinaria. Tiempo de espera para la categorà ­a 3 y otros trabajadores Los trabajadores que obtienen la tarjeta de residencia por la categorà ­a 3 (EB-3) o por la de otros trabajadores esperan en estos momentos cuatro aà ±os y medio, para los casos de ciudadanos de Latinoamà ©rica y Espaà ±a. Otros paà ­ses, como India o China tienen tiempos de espera superiores. En la categorà ­a 3 y en la de otros trabajadores recaen: Profesionales con licenciatura (B.A. o B.S.).Personas sin estudios superiores pero con una habilidad profesional especial y experiencia laboral de al menos dos aà ±os.Personas sin habilidades especiales pero cuyo trabajo requiere una experiencia laboral de al menos dos aà ±os. Para esta subcategorà ­a no pueden otorgarse mà ¡s de 10,000 tarjetas de residencia por aà ±o fiscal. Las personas que està ¡n esperando por una green card en esta categorà ­a pueden verificar los tiempos de espera en el Boletà ­n de Visas del Departamento de Estado, teniendo en cuenta la fecha de prioridad de su aplicacià ³n. Por à ºltimo, tener en cuenta que para esta categorà ­a es siempre necesario obtener una certificacià ³n laboral y tener una oferta de empleo y que el empleador estadounidense realice la peticià ³n de la green card mediante la planilla I-140. Se recomienda tomar  este test para verificar  que se tienen los conocimientos necesarios sobre green card.