Reflections of the Self: Kurt Vonnegut and Autofiction

Abstract

Readers of Kurt Vonnegut might attest to the feeling that somehow, Vonnegut himself runs through the pages of his fiction. They could refer to the autobiographical elements of his novels, especially WWII in Slaughterhouse Five (1969), but even more than that, readers seem to talk to Vonnegut himself as they read his words. This thesis connects Vonnegut’s extraordinary work to the elusive concept of autofiction: fiction that expresses the inner life of the author purely through their writings. Author-characters are explored through Kilgore Trout in Slaughterhouse Five (1969), the science fiction writer who communicates much truth in his many lies, and the character of Winston Niles Rumfoord in Sirens of Titan (1959), who builds the world to his will. Additionally, projective technique will be explored: the extent in which the narrator in Cat’s Cradle (1963) employs the critical distance of an author.