An Attack on Scientific Optimism: A Study of Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle

Abstract

The novelCat’s Cradleis a more obvious reaction to the twentieth century’s worship of science. It mocks people who believe they can understand, can control everything and survive the world’s mysteries. Kurt Vonnegut tries to portray ironies in the scientific invention on the atomic bomb andice-9. The real source of ice-9 is a speculation about this science fiction invention. John imagines ice-9 as a play thing of Felix Hoenikker’s gift to the children. It directly shows an irony to Felix Hoenikker’s attempt to invent imaginative discovery, ice-9.InCat’s Cradlethere is a actual danger ofman’smisuse of experimentation with atomicstructures. Ice-9 results from a recombination of atoms. Vonnegut ridiculesthe hubris by emphasizing that sheer human stupidity is not only alive in the twentiethCentury but armed to the teeth. Vonnegut has suspicion over science as being beneficial. Vonnegut’sdystopicironic attitudes towards science exposes its other side inCat’s Cradle.