Literary Comparison

From the moment I picked up Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony, until I finished it, I noticed a pleasant similarity to Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five. I thought this was an interesting parallel to explore. I read Slaughterhouse-Five in high school, and at the time, I found it to be very confusing. The main cause of my confusion was also present in Ceremony: time-travel. The main character in Vonnegut's novel, Billy Pilgrim, literally travels through time throughout the story. The time-travel in Ceremony may not be as literal. Tayo explains, "distances and days existed in themselves... They were not barriers" (19). It was this kind of limitless existence which allowed Josiah to be in the jungle when Tayo believed he had killed him. The time-travel in both novels is accentuated by the intermittent and non-linear disclosing of the plot. I suppose, for some, this adds a "punch" to the themes presented in the fragments. However, as stated, I found myself confused. Tayo explains his escape from the chains of time by framing it as a tribal belief. Vonnegut frames the ability to move throughout time as a knowledge received from aliens. Both authors see time as a perception that an ultimate wisdom can conquer.
Both Slaughterhouse-Five and Ceremony took place during Vietnam; written in 1969 and 1977, respectively. The war itself was responsible for many existential crises. Tayo and Billy Pilgrim both seem to consider the war undeserving of the lives it cost. For Tayo, the war was unworthy of the assimilation required to become a soldier. For Billy, the war similarly limited his free will. Yet, in both novels, war was not the main focus. Billy found restrictions of free will beyond his time in the army. Tayo battled the urge to assimilate after being a soldier. The war, though real, still served a metaphor for the extreme struggles present in wartime and everyday life. Tayo learned that trying to convince anyone of his authenticity as a Laguna was a futile battle. In the same respect, he learned that outsiders or white people would never attempt to understand the Laguna people. Tayo would find that his only true free will was to mold his own understandings and knowledge of his identity. Billy Pilgrim also found great opposition from those surrounding him. A senior man that believes in time-travel is received as senile, just as an Indian with faith in rituals is received as "supersitious."
Another similarity I found was in the uncensored, grotesque revelry of bodily functions. Unfortunately, I don't have a copy of Slaughterhouse-Five, and my memory is failing me. However, I do remember multiple imprudent, unforgiving descriptions of diarhhea in army latrines. The description was brash and seemingly juvenile. In Ceremony, there were many depictions of vomiting. I do remember that my high school teacher supplied some sort of explanation for the seemingly exorbitant passages. Apparently, I didn't find his explanation to be reasonable, and discarded it somewhere in my memory. Similarly, I don't see a plausible necessity for Tayo's never-ending upchuck. Are these uncontrollable ejections a metaphor for the expulsion of societal burdens? Are they ridding themselves of preconceived guilt? I couldn't help but find these depictions almost humorous, devaluing the gravity of the authors' intentions. Maybe my reading comprehension falls short of the authors' abilities. I just don't know!
Regardless of the intent, I found myself confused by both the authors' styles and metaphors. It's possible that the authors had contrasting intentions. Yet, my ceaseless bewilderment did not discontinue my interest in Ceremony or Slaughterhouse-Five. I found both to be unique depictions in a sea of representations of their subject matter. I am very quickly bored by recounts of both wartime books and echoing narrations of oppressed groups. However, Ceremony and Slaughterhouse-Five both kept my attention. I suppose that my fascination lies in the unknown and unexplained. But I'd still like an explanation! Seriously, what's with the puking?