Depravity of War

This chapter of Slaughterhouse-Five, once again, has a particular emphasis on war. In the chapter, the Tralfamadorians reveal their views on warfare. They believe that there is nothing they can do about war, and so they tell Billy that "...we simply don't look at them. We ignore them." This can be seen as a metaphor for those who write off war as an inevitability. Vonnegut portrays them as alien and inhuman, and that their ability to accept whatever misfortunes come upon them without resistance will inevitably lead to their end. 

Back in WWII, another aspect of war is covered; its horrors. The American and Russian prisoners are kept in squalor, looked down upon by both their captors and the Englishmen. A scene is shown where the Americans are swimming in manure, as their weeks of starvation combined with a rich English feast and a small latrine has led to disaster. Also, once again the massacre of innocents at Dresden and the execution of poor old Edgar Derby are touched on as horrors of war. As an Englishmen exclaims upon seeing what the war has wrought upon the young, "My God, my God - it's the Children's Crusade."