In the novel, Slaughterhouse five, Vonnegut uses an extraterrestrial species known as Tralfamadorians to serve as a conduit for multiple themes throughout the book. Vonnegut utilizes Billy Pilgrim to portray an unamusing, slightly sorry excuse for a human being to serve as a warning symbol for the readers. After Billy gets abducted he asks the Tralfamadorians, “Why me?” their answer was “Why anybody?” (76) Vonnegut then uses the Tralfamadorians to help illuminate the greater meaning of the book by using a quote from the species: “ignore the awful times and concentrate on the good ones.” (117) Ironically, Billy cannot control what part of time he travels to. For instance, “He is in a constant state of stage fright, he says, because he never
