whats in a name

kevin - something about a sexy irishman
mylastname - looks like a lion

sexy fierce irish lion, that describes me perfectly

hahaha



seriously though, i commend vonnegut for naming his protagonist what he did
billy pilgrim is an excellent choice for the guy
why you make ask?

well

billy is a common name
theres nothing special about it
personally, i cant help but think of goats
but thats just me
its an everyday name for an everyday guy
your average man
billy is nothing to be amazed at
hes not special or anything
hes just there
throughout the novel we get the idea that billy is just there
he was in the top third of his class when he graduated
his wife is just a girl that he married
hes an optomotrist
he isnt special at all
and thats perfect for him
his name and his character are one and the same

now pilgrim
this is where it gets even more interesting
billy is a time travelling tralfamadore visiting europe invader
a pilgrim is pretty much a voyager, although usually its for religious reasons
thats brilliant
no one else has ever travelled in time in slaughterhouse five
billy is the first person to have ever done so
he is constantly jumping around in time going from one moment to the next
in addition, he goes to tralfamadore, a plant that is 446120000000000000 miles away
hes again the first one there and the only one save for montana wildhack
more realistically, he is also a soldier in wwii that goes off to europe
he was accustomed to his american way of life and then hes just thrust into war
all of this exploring and discovering and pioneering must be exhausting for billy
he travels so much, more than your average pilgrim
even within europe he goes to several cities through multiple countries
that alone is quite a bit of pilgramage
throw in the extra planet and the fourth dimension and youve got quite the pilgrim

i think that vonnegut is more witty and attentative to detail than he lets on
im quite pleased by his choice in character names
i think that vonnegut made an excellent decision when naming his protagonist
billy pilgrim is definitely an average traveler

- jakevin