Discovering the "truth"

As I began this novel, I instantly began to tear through each sentence searching for the implicit lies. I questioned every detail that Jonah narrated including the seemingly meaningless descriptions. I was struggling to find blatant deception when I realized that that was the problem. There was not going to be blatant deception. When Jonah arrives on the island of San Lorenzo, he is told that it is "a Christian country” (137). If this were true however, then the citizens would be aware of the terrible environment that they are living in. Instead, the island is full of devote Bokononists who have created lies that make their environment bearable. Vonnegut writes to illustrate how the lies in our lives flow through it so seamlessly that they inherently become the truths. We have trained ourselves to accept them at face value, because it is easier to accept a comforting lie than an unsettling truth. At face value, San Lorenzo is Christian. Once one delves a little deeper though, they can begin to see Bokonon as the central religion. The most intriguing part of the book for me has been how enjoyable it is to read when I stop aggressively analyzing every line. When I accept the story for what it is and nothing more, I instantly sink into a state of comfort and familiarity. This seems to demonstrate Vonnegut’s point. No one wishes to believe that they are living in an untrustworthy world or in my situation, reading an untrustworthy text.

As a disclaimer at the beginning of the book, it states, “nothing in this book is true”. Vonnegut is the voice behind that narration, because Jonah has not even been introduced yet. That line on its own became troubling as I began to read because of how subjective the truth can be. There are times when we are presented with a factual truth that cannot be disputed. On the other hand, there are unsound truths that are easily debatable. These “truths” deal more heavily with emotions rather than concrete evidence. Vonnegut delves more freely into these truths because they more often become a comforting lie. Angela Hoenikker is a remarkable portrayal of this idea. She was the primary caretaker of both her father and her younger brother. After her father’s death, that was the only role that she knew how to be in life. She continued to be a parental figure for Newt even when he became old enough to take care of himself. It is comforting for Angela to believe that she must serve as this role rather than face the fact that she is not needed anymore.