War seems to be a place to be quite serious. It is a place for young men to be molded into soldiers without much regard to individual personality. Billy Pilgrim does not seem to fall into the typical personality for most soldiers. In chapter 8, Billy says “One of the main effects of war, after all, is that people are discouraged from being characters” (164 Vonnegut). We hear most about individuals who have character in Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five, but not so much about those who are fit to be a good soldier. In other war stories, like All Quiet On The Western Front, we hear much more about good soldiers. Ones who are fit to fight and, for the most part, successful. Billy is not built to be a soldier and It almost seems as if war doesn't change him that much because Pilgrim is very much himself throughout the story. He is a little oblivious, and I think his lack of awareness contributes to his ability to escape from the pressure to be a “cookie cutter” soldier. It did not make him a particularly good or successful soldier, but he kept his imagination. I am always curious as to where his imagination will bring us next. I wonder how different the story would be if he did conform to the desired mentality of a soldier.