Vonnegut begins Billy’s narrative with the word “listen”, asking the audience to think carefully of what he has to say. The narrator describes Billy unfavourably, calling him a “filthy flamingo,” who was “bleakly ready for death”. By describing him like this, Vonnegut reinforces how pitiful Billy is. This is also linked to the broader narrative, as Billy reinforces how young and unprepared many soldiers were during the war. Situations are also described unsympathetically, with passages of joy mixed closely with those of immense suffering. One man “had a pleasant little apartment, and his daughter was getting an excellent education. His mother was incinerated in the Dresden fire-storm”. This mirrors the manner in which periods of horror were mixed in with happier ones in Billy’s experiences of the war. It also reflects the inability Billy has to distinguish between the two, as they intermingled so closely for him. The narrators tone is used to describe the manner in which Billy is emotionally stunted, and to convey how pitiful he is
Vonnegut begins Billy’s narrative with the word “listen”, asking the audience to think carefully of what he has to say. The narrator describes Billy unfavourably, calling him a “filthy flamingo,” who was “bleakly ready for death”. By describing him like this, Vonnegut reinforces how pitiful Billy is. This is also linked to the broader narrative, as Billy reinforces how young and unprepared many soldiers were during the war. Situations are also described unsympathetically, with passages of joy mixed closely with those of immense suffering. One man “had a pleasant little apartment, and his daughter was getting an excellent education. His mother was incinerated in the Dresden fire-storm”. This mirrors the manner in which periods of horror were mixed in with happier ones in Billy’s experiences of the war. It also reflects the inability Billy has to distinguish between the two, as they intermingled so closely for him. The narrators tone is used to describe the manner in which Billy is emotionally stunted, and to convey how pitiful he is