Kurt Vonnegut’s God Bless You Mr.Rosewater might be the book that bashes its central theme into the reader’s head more than anything else I’ve ever read. Thankfully it’s a pretty good message. Simply put, Vonnegut suggests that we should try to care for each other for no other reason than we’re all human. And to not concern yourself with the judgements of others who look at you funny for showing compassion.
The novel, in a nutshell, is about millionaire Eliot Rosewater is subjected to a legal case in which he must prove his sanity in order to maintain his place as the head of the Rosewater foundation. His sanity is something he himself is unsure of and is entirely unconcerned with. What he does concern himself with is volunteer firefighters and caring for everyone in the world, no matter how unloveable they might be.
Like much of Vonnegut’s work, the novel is humorous, character driven, delightfully disjointed, self-critical, insightful and human. But the plot is not what Vonnegut wants the reader to take away, instead it is his message of caring for others no matter what, even if it feels pointless. Despite the novel’s name and frequent mention of the divine, very little of it is concerned with religion in any way. Instead, Vonnegut advocates to be compassionate simply because we all deserve to be treated with kindness.
I’d highly recommend God Bless You Mr.Rosewater to anyone who likes Vonnegut, dark humour, or wants a reason to stay positive in the face of nihilism. Or even if you’re just bored.
I’ve included some lines and dialogues from the book that I particularly enjoyed or that stood out to me. Many of them repeat the same sentiment, but I hope this emphasizes just how much Vonnegut tries to beat this message into the reader’s head.
Quotes:
“If the man who is to receive the treasure is unused to wealth, has an inferiority complex and shapeless feelings of guilt, as most people do, the lawyer can often take as much as half the bundle, and still receive the recipient’s blubbering thanks.”
Many of us think little of ourselves at least some of the time. We sometimes feel guilt for simply existing as we are, and not being more – more productive, more talented, more successful, more intelligent, more capable, etc. None of us are alone in this.
“And he capped this insult by giving paintings to museums for the spiritual elevation of the poor. The museums were closed on Sundays.”
Samuel Rosewater, cared so little for the poor who have helped him make his fortune. He ‘gives back’ to them by donating expensive paintings to a museum for their betterment. But it is closed on the one day that these same poor people are not working. Those who are supposed to benefit from this are locked out of their ‘reward.’
“There was something to be said for Lister and Eunice… they could laugh as though they meant it.”
The good people who we meet and who live life to the fullest, they’re willing to seize the day and enjoy life when an opportunity presents itself. They make the most of it.
“Be a sincere, attentive friend of the poor.”
Help those who you can, and do it in an earnest and meaningful way, not out of self-interest. It is the most immediate and real way you can put some good back into the world.
“Life is a space voyage, and not a short one, either, but one that’ll last for billions of years.”
We are all, knowingly or unknowingly, taking part in a great multi-generational experiment to a new Earth that we have not quite shaped yet. The Earth that future generations will inherit is the product of what we leave to them. So let’s leave them a good one. “A society grows great when old men plant trees in whose shade they shall never sit.”
“He never saw anything funny in anything, so deeply immured was he by the utterly unplayful spirit of the law.”
Those who try to take advantage of the code of laws that govern our society for their own interests may end up missing the small joys that make life a delight. They can’t laugh as though they mean it.
“Trout’s favourite formula was to describe a perfectly hideous society, not unlike his own, and then, toward the end, to suggest ways in which it could be improved.”
This is what every story Kurt Vonnegut writes tries to do. He’s just trying to overstate it as much as he can.
“Who’ll go on fighting for a hundred years, by God? The volunteer firemen, that’s who.”
Those who put themselves at risk to try and help and save others in their spare time, for no reason but for the sake of helping others, are the ones who preserve the best parts of our society. They represent the best of us and what we can all do if we have the courage to show compassion to each other.
“Those exceedingly rare individuals who reach biological maturity still loving and wanting to help their fellow men.”
Again, the best of us are those that want to help improve the world around us and care for others. This exists in all of us, especially in the naivety of youth, but is chipped away as we age. If you can, try to preserve it within yourself.
“Go love without the help of any thing on Earth.”
Even if you don’t have a reason, even if life makes it difficult, try to care for and help others.
“The secret is that they’re human.”
The secret to caring for people, the only reason you need to do so, is that they too are human.
“You gave up everything a man is supposed to want, just to help the little people, and the little people know it. God bless you Mr. Rosewater.”
Eliot Rosewater gave up riches, status and luxury just to help people with less than him. Even if others consider him insane or look down on him, those who he’s helped have seen a real difference in their life. His efforts mean something to them.
“May I ask you a highly personal question?”
“It’s what life does all the time.”
Life gets ugly and in your face all the time, but that’s just part of it. It’s a complicated and beautiful mess.
“You mean fright about not getting enough to eat, about not being able to pay the doctor, about not being able to give your family nice clothes, a safe, cheerful, comfortable place to live, a decent education, and a few good times? You mean shame about not knowing where the Money River is?
"The what?"
The Money River, where the wealth of the nation flows. We were born on the banks of it. We can slurp from that mighty river to our hearts' content. And we even take slurping lessons, so we can slurp more efficiently.
"Slurping lessons?"
From lawyers! From tax consultants! We're born close enough to the river to drown ourselves and the next ten generations in wealth, simply using dippers and buckets. But we still hire the experts to teach us the use of aqueducts, dams, reservoirs, siphons, bucket brigades, and the Archimedes' screw. And our teachers in turn become rich, and their children become buyers of lessons in slurping.”
Don’t seek pointless excess and try to prevent others from getting what you have. Don’t judge people for being unaware of things that come naturally to you. Don’t pull the ladder up behind you. Help others live full and happy lives, and you might just live a full and happy life yourself.
“Can I help being human?”
“No”
“Can anybody?”
“Not that I know of.”
We’re all human, We’re all deeply flawed and troubled, and that’s okay. Don’t hold people’s humanity against them, love them for it.
“There’s only one rule that I know of…God damn it, you’ve got to be kind.”
If you can choose only one rule to base your life around, this isn’t a bad one.
“The lives led there were nearly all paltry, lacking in subtlety, wisdom, wit or invention – were precisely as pointless and unhappy as lives led in Rosewater, Indiana. Inherited millions did not help. Nor did the arts and sciences.”
No life, no matter how much or how little wealth, success, talent, adventure, excitement or anything else, is inherently worth any more or any less than anyone else's. Our worth is in how we choose to live and who we choose to be, and in simply being human.
“Like most Americans of modest means, Fred knew nothing about his ancestors.”
Records and legacies are often the luxuries of the rich and powerful. Everything fades over time if we let it. So talk to your older relatives, learn from them, and choose to love them.
“He could afford to be affectionate. He was one of the few men in Pisquontuit whose manhood was not in question.”
Men often prevent themselves from showing affection or compassion to others out of fear that their masculinity will be questioned. Yet those without this anxiety can care for others and be no less of a man.
“Unless somebody revolted. Nobody seemed about to.”
Circumstances change drastically when people get fed up and demand change. We rarely get excited enough to make these demands.
“It’s the way they have of thinking that everything nice in the world is a gift to the poor people from them or their ancestors.”
Nobody can grant or withhold the ability to appreciate the good in the world to someone else. We can all appreciate a sunrise, or a nice day, and all without owing it to anyone else.
“People shouldn’t have to apologize for being poor. The question in America should be ‘Is this guy a good citizen?’”
Don’t judge people by their wealth or status. Judge them how they treat others and the world around them.
“He had won Caroline to his way of thinking. It was a simple thing for any passionate person to do.”
Sincerity and authenticity have a persuasiveness of their own. If you are to speak on something, speak with conviction about what you believe in.
“For a man who depends on the votes of the ordinary common people, Senator, you certainly can say mean things to them.”
Elected representatives are meant to serve and represent you. They are not better than their electorate and should not think of themselves as above others.
“I can’t help thinking people are going to think you’re crazy for paying so much attention to people like us.”
“Have you seen the other people there are to pay attention to?”
People might judge you for showing compassion or empathy to others. Don’t let their apathy or jadedness prevent you from caring for others.
“Mental telepathy, with everyone constantly telling everybody everything, produced a sort of generalized indifference to all information.”
Too much information can stop you from caring about something, be it a cause, an issue, a person, whatever. So when you want to be heard by others, be selective in what you say. Rather than tell everybody everything, tell what you want people to know to those you want to know it.
“Pretend to be good always, and even God will be fooled.”
Even if you don’t believe yourself to be good or kind, make an effort to act that way. Even the omniscient won’t be able to tell the difference. Because kindness doesn’t come naturally, it’s something we have to work towards, the meaningful things usually are.
“So– if we can’t find reasons and methods for treasuring human beings because they are human beings, then we may as well, as has so often been suggested, rub them out.”
If we can’t care for each other just for being there to be cared for, what’s the point of any of this?
“Your devotion to volunteer fire departments is very sane, too Eliot, for they are, when the alarm goes off, almost the only examples of enthusiastic unselfishness to be seen in this land. They rush to the rescue of any human being, and count not the cost…There we have people treasuring people as people. It's extremely rare. So from this we must learn.”
The best of us are altruistic and try to save others simply because they need help. We can all learn something from this.
“People can use all the uncritical love they can get.”
There’s enough pain and suffering in this world as it is, so don’t be afraid to spread some compassion where you can.
“Thanks to the example of Eliot Rosewater, millions upon millions of people may learn to love and help whomever they see.”
If just one person tries to be a difference and do the impossible – care for others for no reason other than they’re human, then maybe others will see it and start to learn from it. If we can learn to be jaded and selfish over time, maybe we can learn the opposite. Maybe we can care for each other, simply because we’re all human, what more of a reason do we need?