Billy says that the aliens abducted him on his daughter's wedding night and returned him a few milliseconds later, but actually spend many months on Tralfamadore because the Tralfamadorians can also see in the fourth dimension, time, which allowed them to keep Billy for what seemed like longer than what he was actually there. While on Tralfamadore, Billy learns to accept his life as it is dealt to him because nothing that happens to you damages you forever. Since time is relative, and your life is like a mountain range, your death ,birth, and all the events in between are nothing more than peaks in a range of mountains, irremovable and able to be visited numerous times. .
The point of view that Slaughterhouse-Five is written from also affects the way the reader fells about time after reading the novel. Since the story is narrated by a omniscient being that is everywhere with Billy Pilgrim, the reader gets a first hand account of every event in his life. In addition, Billy is very relaxed and accepting all things around him. A good example of this is Billy's habit of following every death withso it goes?. (Vonnegut 69) The repetition of this phrase not only de-emphasizes death, but also helps Vonnegut assert control over the readers response after a death. (Dawley 2) The way Billy describes the war as if it is still going also directly relates to his repetition ofso it goes? and his acceptance of the relativity of time. After seeing the clean shaven Americans at the camp, Billy realized how young they were and was shocked, saying,? My God, it's the Children's Crusade!? (Vonnegut 91). This shows Billy's view of war as irrelevant and of no practical use except in the extermination of some mother's child. He believes that people are no better off, as far as getting along, then when they started the war. Because of his beliefs about war, Billy lackadaisically goes through it accepting everything that happens to him because of it.
