46 pages • 1 hour read
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
The motif of suicide supports the theme of The Fear of Uselessness and Obsolescence. In Kilgore Trout’s novel 2BR02B—the title of which Eliot maintains is an allusion to Hamlet’s famous opening soliloquy—death is voluntary. As a result, there is a rise of ethical suicide parlors, where attractive hostesses help people who feel “silly and pointless” (21) die in painless ways. This speculative scenario contrasts starkly with the novel’s reality, in which financial ruin drives people like Fred’s father to death by suicide. Eliot posts fliers for the foundation, asking people to call him if they are contemplating suicide. He often buys them more time, sometimes giving a few hundred dollars to convince someone to live another week. Eliot has experience with suicide. Immediately after realizing that he has killed three unarmed firefighters in World War II, he lies down in front of a moving truck, only to be saved at the last moment. He feels unworthy of the second chance he has been given, and he uses his good fortune to help those around him. Fred’s constant contemplation of suicide and his obsession with life insurance represents the generational effect that suicide can have on a family.
By Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
2 B R 0 2 B
2 B R 0 2 B
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Breakfast of Champions
Breakfast of Champions
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Cat's Cradle
Cat's Cradle
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Deadeye Dick
Deadeye Dick
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Epicac
Epicac
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Fates Worse Than Death
Fates Worse Than Death
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Galapagos
Galapagos
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Harrison Bergeron
Harrison Bergeron
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Mother Night
Mother Night
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Player Piano
Player Piano
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Slaughterhouse-Five
Slaughterhouse-Five
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
The Sirens of Titan
The Sirens of Titan
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Welcome to the Monkey House
Welcome to the Monkey House
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.