In the short stories of Kurt Vonnegut Welcome to the Monkey House, he creates unique settings for all his stories. The story “All the Kings Horses” I learned the importance of the setting, in order to help create the theme where there is no rules. In “Next Door” we learn that the setting was the number one cause for all the conflicts and misunderstandings. Setting and theme go hand in hand, we can’t have a theme without the right setting. I will compare the different setting from the two stories “All the Kings Horse” with “Next Door”, to help give a better understanding of the connection between setting and theme. ”All the Kings Horses” takes place in a jungle area where there are no rules or laws to follow. Colonel Kelly, wife, twin sons, pilot, co-pilot, and ten other soldiers land in a Communist guerrilla area that is run by Pi Ying. Colonel Kelly and others are taken captive by Pi Ying and are forced to play a game of live chess for their lives. Using their bodies as chess pieces every…show more content… If this story would have taken place in a highly populated area where there is laws to follow, then we would not have the theme of the story and it would change everything. Because of the setting Pi Ying is able to force Colonel Kelly and his people into the chess game for their lives. In another story from Welcome to the Monkey House we also learn how important the setting is in order to create and bring the story life. “Next Door” takes place in a city and not in the jungle like “All the Kings Horses”. In “Next Door” there is laws to follow, cops to enforce them, and neighbors for assistance if needed. The story is about an eight year old boy that is left home alone for a few hours because the parents were out to watch an “adult” movie. The conflict begins when the next door neighbors begin to argue