An “antiwar Declaration”: A Study Of Ironies In Slaughterhouse-five

Kurt Vonnegut Jr.(1922-2007) is one of the most famous and prolific American writers after the Second World War. Among his novels, Slaughterhouse-Five(1969) is universally acknowledged as his masterpiece. After a close reading of the novel and the theory on irony, the author of this thesis finds that the ironic features of the novel are prominent and its ironic features are mainly embodied in its verbal irony and situational irony. Based on detailed analyses of the two different kinds of ironies in this novel, the author of this thesis finds that all those ironies highlight the antiwar theme. The application of irony facilitates the Vonnegut’s exposure of the absurdity and inhumanity of wars. Vonnegut shows his condemnation on wars and his deep concern for human being’s fate. Kurt Vonnegut hands in a special “antiwar declaration” featured by irony to the whole world.This thesis consists of four chapters:Chapter one is a brief introduction to Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five, literature review on Slaughterhouse-Five both at home and abroad and the theory on irony.In Chapter two, the application of verbal irony in Slaughterhouse-Five is analyzed, which is divided into four parts: irony of understatement and overstatement about children, irony of positive words and negative use about women, irony of simile and metaphor about survivors and irony of tone about the dead.In Chapter three, the analysis of situational irony in Slaughterhouse-Five is carried out from three aspects: Irony produced by disparity between expectancy and outcomes, which presents the tragedy of Dresden; Irony of patriotism in literary works and films, which presents the damage of wars on culture; Irony of affection, which presents the damage of wars on family.In Chapter four, a conclusion based on the above analyses will be drawn.