Famed American writer Kurt Vonnegut, the author behind honored works such as Slaughterhouse-Five, Cat’s Cradle, and Breakfast of Champions, died Wednesday night (April 11) due to brain injuries resulting from a fall suffered a few weeks ago. He was 84. Carving a niche rooted in non-fiction, sci-fi, and tar-black humor, Vonnegut’s prose ascended to prominence in the ’60s and ’70s, particularly on account of Slaughterhouse-Five, a part-authentic part-fantasy novel reflecting upon his time as a WWII P.O.W., spent beneath the German town of Dresden during the Allied Force’s fire bomb raids. Released in 1969 to critical acclaim, Slaughterhouse-Five is now considered one of the most illustrious works in modern literature.
In addition to his novels, Vonnegut also became an outspoken supporter of anti-war and freedom of speech campaigns, broadcasting his Humanists views via both literature — including essays and poems — and public appearances. In response to Vonnegut’s death, bloggers, both literary scholars and teenage readers, are sounding off, describing the influence of the writer on themselves and literary culture and appropriately quoting the death idiom of Vonnegut’s fictional race, the Tralfamadorians: “So it goes…”
Here’s what bloggers are saying about Kurt Vonnegut:
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“I hope the Tralfamadorians treat you well.” — Drew Yamashita, snuff-daddy.livejournal.com
“He was the author of the greatest piece of advice ever given by man to man: ‘I tell you, we are here on Earth to fart around, and don’t let anybody tell you different.'” — Andy, blog.myspace.com
“So he made it to 84 and then dies by falling? Somebody should have got him a scooter. Seriously though, great writer…he will be missed.” — Jason, blog.myspace.com
“He is my favorite author…the realization that his works are now finite makes my heart sink.” — Anna, blog.myspace.com
“While I rarely care when famous people die, I feel the need to post about this one because, well, it was Kurt Vonnegut. His writing never failed to make me laugh or to question the world around me in some way or another. He’s one of the reasons I decided I wanted to be a writer, and I’m sad I’ll never get to read a new story by him again.” — TylerDurden420, tylerdurden420.livejournal.com
“So it goes…” — Sebboi, sebboi.livejournal.com
Talk: Which was your favorite entry in the Kurt Vonnegut’s canon?
