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Allusion
Explanation and Analysis—Pilgrim the Princess:
Billy Pilgrim takes the place of Cinderella in a moment of situational irony in Chapter 6:
The boots fit perfectly. Billy Pilgrim was Cinderella, and Cinderella was Billy Pilgrim.
The scene is an allusion to fairy tale of Cinderella, which was just performed by the English prisoners of war. In the fairy tale, Prince Charming identified Cinderella through the fit of her shoe, and Vonnegut is playfully referencing that moment as Billy finally finds a new pair of shoes that fit him. The moment is situationally ironic because Billy Pilgrim is currently a prisoner of war in enemy territory. He is, in other words, in a terrible situation, a far cry from being a princess swept off of her feet by a charming prince. The sheer absurdity of the reference makes it darkly humorous.
And yet, Pilgrim is in some ways chosen by fate. He manages to survive the war against all odds, when most of his fellow soldiers are killed in one way or another. He was also the lone survivor of a plane crash. Cinderella, through the help of some magic, is saved from her destitute life against all odds; similarly, things just seem to work out for Billy Pilgrim, no matter how life-threatening the situation appears. While an ironic comparison, the Cinderella allusion highlights Billy Pilgrim's unlikely fate in an amusing way.
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