In this essay I will stylistically analyze an excerpt from chapter 3 of Kurt Vonnegut's novel; Slaughterhouse Five. I am particularly interested in the effects that different perspectives have on my excerpt, as well as the effects of narrative structure and whether it conforms to or diverges from typical patterns of narrative structure. I will also analyze the characterization of the different figures in my excerpt and the impressions they give on the characters. I will also look at how dialogue is represented and the overall effects of different devices. I expect to find that Vonnegut uses a mixture of different perspectives that may be difficult to extract from one another. I also expect to find that Vonnegut generally sticks to the usual narrative structure, however I wouldn't be surprised to find some divergence. First I will discuss the representation of dialogue in my excerpt. The only two people involved in a conversation are Wild Bob and Billy. When Wild Bob, probably mentally and physically unstable, speaks for the first time, he speaks directly to Billy. “Are you one of my boys?” (Vonnegut 1969: 55). However, instead of responding; Billy remains silent. "Billy didn't answer." (Vonnegut 1969: 55). This could be seen as Billy flouting Grice's maxim of quantity as he does not provide the right amount of information that Wild Bob is looking for; he is denying participation in the conversation. This reluctance to participate suggests that Billy may not know the answer or be confident enough to answer the question asked. This is reiterated when we are told “The question made no sense” (Vonnegut 1969: 55). This refusal to participate results in a pause that causes Wild Bob to repeat... in the center of the paper... the character's desires to distance himself from the situation. The use of first person, however, contradicts this idea and shows that the character is definitely rooted in the story. Farrell (2009: 352) explains that this method of inserting the biography perhaps prevents readers from easily ignoring the events described by Vonnegut. The first-person narrative thus reminds the reader that the events were in fact reality and suggests that the fiction has an intimate connection to the narrator's life. Works Cited Farrell, S. (2009) 'Critical Companion to Kurt Vonnegut', Critical Companions Series, New York, Infobase PublishingTooan, J.M. (2001) 'Narrative: A Critical Linguistic Introduction', illustrated, reprint, revised, The Interface Series, London, England, Psychology PressVonnegut, K. (1969) Slaughterhouse-Five, Vintage Edition, London, England : Vintage