The narrative function of Kilgore Trout and his fictional works in Slaughterhouse-Five

Abstract

This paper analyzes Vonnegut's use of historical and imaginary sources in Slaughterhouse-Five, paying particular attention to the structural role played by Kilgore Trout —Vonnegut's literary alter ego— and his six science-fiction stories. Trout's intratextual fiction, it is argued here, enlarges the scope of the novel, underlines a series of central themes, criticizes certain moral values, and introduces a comic dimension that counterbalances the seriousness of the war material.