Black Humor in Vonneguts Cats Cradle :: Cats Cradle Essays

ghastly Humor in Vonneguts Cats birthplace The phrase Black Humor has the broad meaning of poking fun at subjects considered fiendishly serious or even taboo by some2. This exposition is simple, and yet embodies an important idea that is often lost in much complex definitions the idea that Black Humor can actu totallyy be fun, and provoke laughter. This is not, of course, the only important aspect of the term, and I shall explore some of the other important defining features of Black Humor forward moving on to discuss its use in Kurt Vonneguts Cats Cradle3. Many critics stool attempted definitions of Black Humor, n unmatchable of them entirely successfully. The most significant happen features of these definitions ar that Black Humor works with absurdity, ironic detachment4 opposing honourable views held in equipoise, humanitys lack of a sense of purpose in the atypical nuclear age, the realization of the complexity of moral and aesthetic experience which affects the i ndividuals energy to choose a course of action5 and a playing with the readers ideas of reality6. On their avow these elements dont make up what we understand as Black Humor. Combine all of these ideas with the generation of humor, particularly through incongruity, and as a method of release tension, 7 and I think that we are close to realizing the complexities of Black Humor. entirely perhaps the best definition of all comes from a Black humourist - Vonnegut himself. Black humorists holy wanderers find nothing but junk and lies and imbecility wherever they go. A chewing gum wrapper or a used condom is often the best they can do for a Holy Grail.8 What, then, are Vonneguts uses for Black Humor in his novel Cats Cradle? I believe he has three primary uses, which are enjoyment furthering the novels themes and raising self-awareness in the reader. Entertainment Vonnegut believes that writers can influence peoples ideas profoundly. In one of his many speeches he stated the foll owing We will become powerful when those who have listened to our myths have become important. Those who are influential now are living in accordance with myths created for them by writers when they were young. It is perfectly clear that our rulers do not question those myths for even a minute during busy mean solar day after busy day. Let us pray that those terribly influential writers who created those our leaders were humane.