Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five When one begins to analyze a military novel it is important to first look at the historical context in which the book was written. On the nights of February 13-14 in 1944 the city of Dresden, Germany was subjected to one of the worst air attacks in the history of man. By the end of the bombing 135,000 to 250,000 people had been killed by the combined forces of the United States and the United …showed first 75 words of 2143 total…

…showed last 75 words of 2143 total…fe to some extent, Vonnegut was not. Vonnegut was never able to answer his own "Why me?" but in truth a broader question exists "Why any of us?" Bibliography Klinkowitz, Jerome. Slaughterhouse-Five Reforming the Novel and the World. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1990. Lundquist, James. Kurt Vonnegut. New York: Frederick Ungar Publishing Co., 1977. Tanner, Tony. City of Words: American Fiction 1950-1970. New York: Harper and Row, Publishers, 1971. Vonnegut, Kurt Jr. Slaughterhouse-Five. New York: Dell Publishing Co. Inc., 1969.