Slaughterhouse - Five Chapter 3 Focus Questions

1. Describe the German force that captured Billy. What does that force tell us about Germany at the end of the war?

• 2 boys, 2 old men that were farmers, and a middle-aged corporal
• "armed and clothed fragmentarily with junk taken from real soldiers"
• haggard, tired, worn out

2. What happens to the scouts?

• shot by the Germans

3. Why does the German photographer take a picture of Billy's and Weary's feet?

• to show "how miserably equipped the American army often was"

4. What was on Billy's wall in his office, which kept him and some of his patients going?

• a bible verse: "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to tell the difference."

5. Describe the conditions on the trains that transported the prisoners. Describe the car that housed the railroad guards.

• cramped, half must stand while the other half sleeps; cold, narrow, little food and water, not allowed to get off at all
• bright, comfortable, good food, decorated

6. Why does Vonnegut refer to the prisoners on the trains as "human beings"?

• no longer individual people, just a mass of beings that eat, drink, sleep, crap, and piss