Slaughterhouse Five - Tone

"When the food came in, the human beings were quiet and trusting and beautiful. They shared." (pg. 70)

This novel is full of sarcasm. The author's tone is often clearly sarcastic. In this example, the soldiers have been treated badly and been given little food. Obviously, once they do receive food, they are all going to get whatever they can. The author could have simply described that they weren't sharing. However, the sarcasm creates a much stronger image. It makes the reader smile at the absurdity of the statement, but also makes them recognize how human nature can be. The greed and desperation of these men cause them to take all they can and not worry about how the others fare.