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Throughout history, society, in general, has been molded by the ravages of war. From King Henry VII's invasion of Brittany, to the bloodshed on the shores of Iwo Jima, all the way to the present-day territory dispute in Bosnia and Herzegovina, war abounds mankind and its short history. As nations, ethnicities, ect. constantly attempt to outdo one another war will continue to arise. In recent years much has been said about the poor effects war has on society in a general sense; but what does war do to an individual? This is a question often avoided as a result of the bitter truth: War can all but destroy the sane mind of the common man. This is a fact that was abundantly presented in Kurt Vonnegut's "absurdist classic" Slaughterhouse Five. The story is initially set during World War II, but moves from place to place, and from time period to time period throughout the novel. The story centers around the infamous fire-bombing of Dresden and the mythic journey of an
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One could assume that Billy Pilgrim was, at one time, a very strongminded man. Billy's corrupted sanity allowed his mind to take him on an incredible journey through space and time. Tralfamadore is a very different land than Earth. War has an uncanny ability to inflict mental stress on man.
The story of Billy Pilgrim is a near-perfect example of the horrendous way in which war can affect the mind of the common man.
The anguish of war can do so much to harm the mind of the common man. Billy Pilgrim's mind was not only a victim of torture, but also the Dresden fire-bombings -- one of the most deadly acts of war ever.
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