No longer a Bokononist

Although I had warmed up to his teachings in the first third of Cat’s Cradle, Bokonon has lost my respect as a person. The further the acclaimed author, Kurt Vonnegut, illustrates his way of life, the less I can tolerate the religion he created called Bokonism. Bokonon has quickly become my least favorite character in the second third of Vonnegut’s novel. He “’cynically and playfully’” crafted the religion to “’provide the people with better and better lies’” (172). Despite the fact that these lies provide people with hope, any sense of hope remains false with the lies with guide the Bokononist way of life. Vonnegut indirectly characterizes Bokonon as cunning as well as insensitive through Julian Castle’s negative diction of “’cynically,’” implying that his own twisted desires lead him to manipulate the thousands who follow him (172). He also schemes with his partner-in-crime, Corporal Earl McCabe, to “’give the religious life of the people more zest,’” and creates two solutions. Firstly, he decides to outlaw his religion, purely to make it more appealing to people (173). He makes the claim that people want what they cannot have, fostering the “’zest’” he desired (173). This situation depicts another scenario in which Bokonon emotionally manipulates his followers the way that he pleases, indirectly characterizing him as cruel and devious. The religious leader not only inflicts harm emotionally on his followers, but also physically. The credible Castle explains that Bokonon “’suggested the hook’” for a savage form of capital punishment for those caught practicing his religion (173). He crafted this penalty to physically harm those caught practicing the religion he created, under the law he imposed. His lack of sensitivity becomes prominent after the revealing of these details, furthering my hatred for this man. To me, any person who maintains a clear conscience while taking human lives (even indirectly), cannot be tolerated. Despite my previous understanding for the basic principles of Bokononism, my opinions have altered greatly after reading the second third of the novel. I can only hope that Bokonon will change his need for “’zest’” and simply allow people to practice his religion without persecution (173).