Something that jumped out to me in Cat’s Cradle, is that no one in the Hoenikker family seems to care about anything. In Newt’s letter to John, Newt talks about everything from his rejection from school to the death of his father without seeming to care much about any of it. He only throws in a tidbit about being married soon at the end, and even still does not place much emphasis on it. Newt’s father seems to follow this as well by not showing love for his children, or for his work. He began to perform research on turtles simply on a whim. Newt’s brother was a genius at making models, but according to the owner of the model shop he never pursued anything else. He wasn’t interested in girls, movies, cars, or his family. Also, while their sister intensely cared for their father, she didn’t do anything else.
On a different note, I noticed that Vonnegut seems to bring himself into the book on multiple occasions. He brings in many characters from the midwest and especially from Indiana, where he is from, and where John is from. The Hoenikker’s (Newt and his sister) move to Indianapolis, and the couple on the plane live in Indiana. He also represents his own dark sense of humor in the religion of Bokononism.
Jeffrey,
ReplyDeleteI realized the same thing about the Hoenikker family. I wondered if this was due to their childhoods. It must have been very hard growing up with a father who was so out of touch with reality. Little Newt said one of the thing he distinctly remembered was that, on the day of the atomic bomb, his father tried to play with him. He explained how this was such a strange situation in the event that it very rarely happened. He actually ran outside crying because he was so freaked out. Little Newt seems to be the most engaging, even though he has a social stigma of being a "midget". I thought he had the brightest personality, even though his brother and sister were "normal" in regards to height. I wonder if Vonnegut planned this paradox or not, but I think it is interesting. When "Jonah" goes to the graveyard looking for Frank's grave, he uncovers the mother's tomb accidentally and reads the comments left by her children. These comments signify the important role that she played in their lives. I wish "Jonah" asked them more about her, as she seems to play such a small role in the story. Perhaps their lack of interest (and possibly maturity) may be a reason why they did not destroy the ice-nine when they had the chance. I definitely agree with you on the fact that they have problems interacting.
I noticed this apathy in the narrator as well as the Hoenikkers. The narrator (Jonah, John, Sam, whatever) doesn't seem to care much about anything at all. He simply lets life happen to him. Could this connect to the idea of fate mentioned in the beginning of the novel and in Bokonism? He goes wherever the winds of life take him, which have interestingly enough take him to the Hoenikkers, the family of the man his book was to be about.
ReplyDeleteJeff,
ReplyDeleteI had not thought about the apathy of the characters too much before your blog post. I think it is possible that their perceived apathy indicates something meaningful is missing from their lives. As Dan said, perhaps the narrator simply allows life to take him, without putting in much effort, in the form of fate. Perhaps what is missing in their lives is religion, and as the narrator allows fate to control him, he discovers the practical uses of Bokononism.
Jeff,
ReplyDeleteI had not thought about the apathy of the characters too much before your blog post. I think it is possible that their perceived apathy indicates something meaningful is missing from their lives. As Dan said, perhaps the narrator simply allows life to take him, without putting in much effort, in the form of fate. Perhaps what is missing in their lives is religion, and as the narrator allows fate to control him, he discovers the practical uses of Bokononism.