Kurt Vonnegut Dead, Deceased
87 years old, and the author of such fantastic American novels as Slaughterhouse-Five (1969), Cat’s Cradle (1963), and Breakfast of Champions (1973), Kurt Vonnegut just passed away. He died last night in his New York home. Morgan Entrekin, a long time family friend, reported the death as brain injuries as a result of a recent fall.
The International Herald Tribune recounts his most formative memory, the firebombing of Dresden:
The defining moment of Vonnegut’s life was the firebombing of Dresden, Germany, by Allied forces in 1945, an event he witnessed firsthand as a young prisoner of war. Thousands of civilians were killed in the raids, many of them burned to death or asphyxiated. “The firebombing of Dresden,” Vonnegut wrote, “was a work of art.” It was, he added, “a tower of smoke and flame to commemorate the rage and heartbreak of so many who had had their lives warped or ruined by the indescribable greed and vanity and cruelty of Germany.”
He also attended Cornell University, my alma mater.
This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 11th, 2007 at 11:05 pm and is tagged with firebombing of dresden, morgan entrekin, international herald tribune, kurt vonnegut, american novels, dresden germany, cornell university, brain injuries, slaughterhouse five, time family, breakfast of champions, defining moment, allied forces, family friend, prisoner of war, alma mater, heartbreak, work of art, greed, civilians. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback.