Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. died yesterday. When I read the headline this morning, the quiet of my napping cat-filled house was shattered with a long, wailing "Noooooooooooooooo". Anyone who has ever read Vonnegut knows that he was no sentimentalist. When it comes to the passing of icons, frankly, neither am I. This is because the icon has already done pretty much everything they were ever going to do. Sinatra hadn't made a record in years. Katherine Hepburn was a recluse. But Vonnegut was different. He still had work to do. Work that, for me, was extremely important.
Vonnegut was a witty and vocal critic of all institutions, including the one with which we are currently burdened - the Bush Administration. We desparately need his voice to continue. But, as he would have said, "So it goes".
I started reading Vonnegut in high school. His ability to render a situation, no matter how terrible, into a few simple, unsentimental words is true genius. This is an important talent to have. For instance, as we look at the current situation and feel that it may be the beginning of the end for the America we thought we knew, Vonnegut reminds us that we've lived through such moments. Of course, that never precluded him from getting peeved and talking about it.Perhaps it was his natural existentialism that made it easy for Vonnegut to talk about our failures as a civilization and society. He once recommended that someone carve these words into a wall of the Grand Canyon:
"We probably could have saved ourselves, but we were too damned lazy to try very hard ... and too damn cheap."
Even so, as long as we manage to hold together enough to survive, Vonnegut will live on - in his words and in his ability to inspire readers. Perhaps we will even see a sort of resurrection, as curious youngsters (and yes, they still exist) introduce themselves to his writings, and by virtue, introduce themselves to critical thought.I will close with my favorite words from Vonnegut, from "Slapstick":
Vonnegut was a witty and vocal critic of all institutions, including the one with which we are currently burdened - the Bush Administration. We desparately need his voice to continue. But, as he would have said, "So it goes".
I started reading Vonnegut in high school. His ability to render a situation, no matter how terrible, into a few simple, unsentimental words is true genius. This is an important talent to have. For instance, as we look at the current situation and feel that it may be the beginning of the end for the America we thought we knew, Vonnegut reminds us that we've lived through such moments. Of course, that never precluded him from getting peeved and talking about it.Perhaps it was his natural existentialism that made it easy for Vonnegut to talk about our failures as a civilization and society. He once recommended that someone carve these words into a wall of the Grand Canyon:
"We probably could have saved ourselves, but we were too damned lazy to try very hard ... and too damn cheap."
Even so, as long as we manage to hold together enough to survive, Vonnegut will live on - in his words and in his ability to inspire readers. Perhaps we will even see a sort of resurrection, as curious youngsters (and yes, they still exist) introduce themselves to his writings, and by virtue, introduce themselves to critical thought.I will close with my favorite words from Vonnegut, from "Slapstick":
Well, it looks like the old fart finally got tired. Hi ho.I cannot distinguish between the love I have for people and the love I have for
dogs. When a child, and not watching comedians on film or listening to comedians on the radio, I used to spend a lot of time rolling around on rugs with uncritically affectionate dogs we had. And I still do a lot of that. The dogs become tired and confused and embarrassed long before I do. I could go on forever.
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