Teacher Guide

Cat's Cradle Lesson Plan

Relationship to Other Books

Cat's Cradle pairs well with Vonnegut's other famous novel, Slaughterhouse-Five. Both books deal with similar themes, including mankind's ineptitude in the face of war and the ever-present specter of death. Also noteworthy is the appearance of curious birds in both novels: in Cat's Cradle, right as ice-nine is about to drop into the ocean a bird arrives and sings a song that sounds like a question, "Potee-phweet?" This call is much more prominent in Slaughterhouse-Five, though the appearance in both books ties them together nicely.

The film Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb may serve as a a companion to Cat's Cradle. Both works explore the impending...

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