/lit/ - Literature

>>19724561
His suicide only adds to the tragedy of his life story. A WWII bomber who participated in the bombing of the oldest monastery in all of Europe, Monte Cassino, who converted to catholicism following the war and wrote the book as a way of working through his guilt over bombing the monastery. He then became extremely depressed following Vatican II (hell, he'd probably agree with all the "Vatican II was heresy!!!111" types in this thread, and when his wife died he finally committed suicide. A tragic story, but it makes him and the stories he wrote all the more fascinating for me. Check out The Will and Crucifixius Etiam first if you're a little unsure of him.

>>15844643
Humanity is doomed to repeat its failures, but the beauty of the book is that humanity is still worth it, regardless of all the evils that it produces. No matter how bad it may get, the existence of the good always outweighs whatever calamities and evils may befall the human race, and makes the entire experience worth it.

>>15847543
Regarding the stance of the book on Christianity, knowing the biography of the author usually helps to further understand what he was getting at. Walter M Miller Jr was a WWII vet who participated in the bombing of Monte Cassino, one of the great monasteries of Europe, and after the war he converted to Catholicism. The destruction of this place was the direct inspiration for the book, and it's really tragic to hear that he struggled with depression all his life, taking his own life at 72 soon after his wife died.