Presentations

Hey Everyone,

I just thought I’d throw this out as a bit of a discussion about the presentations in general. Now that most of us have gone, I know Lee is still going on monday, what do people think of the presentations that have happened so far?

I think all of them have had value in one way or another. It’s interesting to see how different approaches can conjure up contrasting thoughts and perspectives on an issue.

Some have been very creative and others more straight forward and informative. What is the best type, in your opinion? maybe it is a blend of the two. In the near future, if you are all going to be out in the business world or what ever world you choose to go into (maybe a distant world for all I know), we will all have to have these types of public speaking skills and comfort level with talking to a group, even if it’s a small one like our group.

Has this type of forum helped any of you with qualms or uneasinesses with public speaking? Or are you guys all used to it by now? In your opinion, what is the best way to do something like talking to a small group of people. Maybe include some good examples from people who have presented this semester

FUBAR

Hey everyone,

I have been thinking a bit about why I like that story so much. I know its not the most thought provoking short story every written, which was evidenced by are somewhat short discussion today, but I do like the overall message. Like Cat’s Cradle, it is almost like a warning to people. Things are probably not going to turn out the way you once saw them. But the story shows us that is OK. There is usually something good you can take from the situation.

I am going to put out this kind of broad based, somewhat personal question. Are any of you afraid of an existence similar to the one that Fuzz had before Francine showed up? Why or why not?

Breakfast of Champions Film

So after reading the novel and watching the film, what are everyone’s thoughts?

The film most certainly takes a different direction than the novel. This may have to do with the narratology that comes with writing the novel; Vonnegut specifically wrote the novel not to have conventional structure, but the film seems to drastically tear his version of the story up. Is there a point to this or is it just another viewpoint that comes from a restricted medium i.e. film.

Relationships in Breakfast of Champions

In many of Vonnegut’s Novels, we see how he constructs relationships between characters through power, money, gender etc. This novel seems to be an attempt to get closer with “real” America. By presenting Midland City, a sort of Anywhere USA, he is trying to satirize and poke fun at real American problems involving these social relationships.

What are some good examples of this from the novel? We can look at the main characters, Kilgore Trout and Dwayne Hoover, or some of the secondary characters such as Francine, Harry, or even some of the characters in Kilgore’s meta-fictional novels.

Breakfast of Champions Movie Link

http://watch-megavideo.com/?p=1684

Check this out if you have some time this weekend. The movie was not received well critically, maybe you could try and answer that question? Again, maybe it is the director straying away from the actual story? Or maybe it is something else. Like someone said before, sometimes novels just are not meant to be made into movies. As we have seen from Slaughterhouse-five movie and now this one, maybe Vonnegut’s writing just does not translate that well to film. Maybe someone could comment on that?

Narratology in Breakfast of Champions

The way in which Vonnegut presents us with his story is very amusing. It’s very different from the ways in which conventional novel writing is done, and very different from his past works as well.

The drawings, in particular, can be poignant or redundant, clever or vulgar. You never know what you are going to get with Vonnegut, a constant Wild Card.

The other thing that really jumped out at me was the way his narrative voice talks to the audience. It is as though he is talking to a two year old. Could this be a product of Vonnegut’s cynical maturity that has him thinking everyone in America is a moron?

Why the patronizing tone? It seems a bit alienating. But maybe there is something else to this technique. Any ideas?

Breakfast of Champions: Kurt at his most cynical?

So starting off reading Breakfast of Champions after Slaughterhouse Five, I am getting a very different vibe. The beginning of the novel somewhat portrays Vonnegut as an accomplished writer who is finally indulging in writing what he really wants to write about. We’ve kind of been conjecturing Vonnegut’s intentions with this or that, trying to read into things from his other novels which aren’t so explicit. In this one, I don’t think he is holding back. He has a lot to say about American lifestyle and he is not afraid of who he is offending.

Is this merely a sign of Vonnegut’s maturity as a writer, or are there other issues at play? Perhaps in the sociological, historical, or political perspective.

Essay Proposals

Hey Everyone,

great proposals today! There were so many and they went by really fast so it’s hard to get a handle on the ideas. However, Maybe we could post here some good points that people had and ways that they were received.

Personally, I really liked the point Alex made about the inwardness that Vonnegut uses in alot of his books. It reminds me of modernist writing, like Franz Kafka or Thomas Mann, that stresses the move from a spiritual world of wonderment to a a cold, calculated inward struggle.

Post your comments here!

Slaughterhouse-five Presentations.

Hey Everyone,

Thanks for those of you who did your presentations yesterday. I thought they were all great!

Maybe this is a good place to expand on some of the ideas that were brought up in the presentations yesterday. I for one, found it interesting how Kurt Vonnegut, in the letter that Karina quoted, referred to the nazis as supermen. Also note how in the novel Rumfoord is referred to as a superman. Interesting parallel…no?

Anything you picked up on during the presentations that you thought was interesting and wanted to comment or expand on, comment here!