Quest for Purpose in the Novels of Kurt Vonnegut Kurt Vonnegut's personal experiences force him to question the meaningless cruelties and contradictory paradigms of the life. As a second-generation German-American and witness to the bombing of Dresden during World War II, he observes first-hand the needless destruction humans are capable of (Dictionary 494). He devotes his works to understanding the chaotic and cruel world he encounters. According to Peter Reed, Vonnegut's works feature a "...protagonist searching for meaning in an absurd world" (500). While struggling to understand the messy universe around them, Vonnegut's protagonists attempt to become contented individuals by understanding the purpose of human life. As he probes the chaotic nature of the universe, Vonnegut, according to Ernest Ranly, "...seems preoccupied with the true nature of the universe. human questions, about war, peace, technology, human happiness” (454). Vonnegut's works show an obsessive desire to answer these questions, and he explores them by chronicling quests for order and purpose in human life. According to Stanley Schatt, Vonnegut "...believed passionately both in the importance of the individual and in the need for human love and compassion" (348). Vonnegut's beliefs become evident as seekers invariably realize Vonnegut's truth: the universe is too chaotic to understand, so the secret to order in their lives is simply kindness. In Vonnegut's novel, Galapagos, the narrator, Leon Trout, attempts to understand the cruelty of humanity after witnessing the brutality and aimlessness of the Vietnam War. As a Marine in "...a nearly endless, thankless, horrible, and ultimately pointless war..." (Galapagos 254), Trout struggles to come to terms with...... middle of paper ... ...nd: A study of the American novel in the 1960s. Yale, 1973. Rep. in Contemporary Literary Criticism, Vol. 3. Detroit: Gale, 1975. Ranly, Ernest W. “What Use Are People? » Commonwealth. May 7, 1971, 207-211. Rep. in Contemporary Literary Criticism, Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 1974. Reed, Peter J. “Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.” Dictionary of Literary Biography. Vol.2: American novelists since World War II. Detroit: Gale, 1978._____. “Kurt Vonnegut.” American Writers. 1981. Scribner Writers Series. Schatt, Stanley. “The World of Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.” in Criticism: Studies in Modern Fiction. Flight. XII, n° 3, 1971. Rpt. in Contemporary Literary Criticism, Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 1973. Vonnegut, Kurt. Galapagos. New York: Dell, 1985._____. Mother's Night. New York: Dell, 1961._____. The Sirens of Titan. New York: Dell, 1959.