I was not an anthropology student prior to the war. I took it up as part of a personal readjustment following some bewildering experiences as an infantryman and later as a prisoner of war in Dresden, Germany. The science of the Study of Man has been extremely satisfactory from that personal standpoint.
Interpretation
The quote reflects on how personal experiences shaped a newfound interest in anthropology for the author.
In this quote, Kurt Vonnegut discusses how his harrowing experiences as an infantryman and a prisoner of war during World War II led him to pursue anthropology. This new focus on the study of humanity became a means of personal readjustment, suggesting that understanding human behavior and society can provide comfort and insight after trauma.
In practice
In a speech about the impact of war on mental health, you could use this quote to illustrate the importance of understanding human experiences.
But by accident, not by cunning calculation, books, because of their weight and texture, and because of their sweetly token resistance to manipulation, involve our hands and eyes, and then our minds and souls, in a spiritual adventure I would be very sorry for my grandchildren not to know about.
How subservient to Jesus, or to a humane God Almighty, were the leaders of this country back in the 1840's, when Marx said such a supposedly evil thing about religion? They had made it perfectly legal to own human slaves, and weren't going to led women vote or hold public office, God forbid, for another eighty year.
All these people talk so eloquently about getting back to good old-fashioned values. Well, as an old poop I can remember back to when we had those old-fashioned values, and I say let's get back to the good old-fashioned First Amendment of the good old-fashioned Constitution of the United States - and to hell with the censors! Give me knowledge or give me death!
Hello, babies. Welcome to Earth. It's hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It's round and wet and crowded. At the outside, babies, you've got about a hundred years here. There's only one rule that I know of, babies - "God damn it, you've got to be kind."
If what Billy Pilgrim learned from the Tralfamadorians is true, that we will all live forever, no matter how dead we may sometimes seem to be, I am not overjoyed. Still--if I am going to spend eternity visiting this moment and that, I'm grateful that so many of those moments are nice.
Plato says that the unexamined life is not worth living. But what if the examined life turns out to be a clunker as well?
Your hair may be brushed, but your mind's untidy. _x000D_ You've had about seven hours of sleep since Friday. _x000D_ No wonder you feel that lost sensation. _x000D_ You're sunk from a riot of relaxation.
It is great that even before we become enlightened or generate any lam-rim realizations we are able to offer incredible benefit to others. The person who does this is a very fortunate person and should rejoice very often.
All good ideas are terrible... _x000D_ Until people realize they are obvious. If you're not willing to live through the terrible stage, you'll never get to the obvious part.
A single lie destroys a whole reputation for integrity.
Our goal is to try to bring a calm and simplicity to what are incredibly complex problems so that you're not aware really of the solution.
I soon discovered that man's importunity is God's opportunity. he uses our problems as building materials for his miracles. I began to understand that this was my first lesson in learning to trust him completely, my first steps on the path to complete dependence on, and obedience to, his guidance.
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