Catch 22 Literary Analysis

    Yossarian's most startling glimpse into the terrors of war and death comes when he spends a night alone on the streets of Rome. He sees homeless children; he witnesses men beating children and dogs, a rape, and a convulsing soldier; he walks over a street littered with broken human teeth. This is one of the rare sections of the novel that does not use humor to point out the cruelty and inhumanity of the world. The scene comes to a climax when Yossarian returns to his apartment and discovers that Aarfy has raped an innocent maid and then thrown her out his window, leaving her dead on the sidewalk below. Then, ironically, Yossarian is arrested for being in Rome without a pass and Aarfy is given an apology for the disturbance, his hideous crime going unpunished. This chapter is when Yossarian begins to really recognize the true face of the military and the meaning of Catch-22; when he goes to the brothel and the old woman tells him that the girls have all been kicked out of their home by soldiers, she explains to him that "Catch-22 says they have a right to do anything we can't stop them from doing" (417;Ch.39). Catch-22 is the justification for every wrong the military commits, and it overrides every other moral law. The horrors that the military creates will never stop, and Yossarian begins to realize that he cannot fight and die

Often times Catch-22 is characterized by a very loose grip on reality. The line between what is apparent and what is real is continually indistinguishable, even to readers. One aspect that contributes greatly to this effect is the distortion of justice and the military technicalities. In the military world created by Heller, what is written on paper is what is true, even if it can be defied by reality. Throughout much of the book, Yossarian is found complaining that there is a “dead man”(24) in his tent. When the concept of the dead man is first introduced, the readers are led to believe that there is an actual dead soldier sitting in Yossarian’s tent, which the military refuses to remove. However, later clarification shows that is not the case at all, but rather, after setting his luggage down, the soldier was killed in the air before he even got the chance to sign in. The grim irony of the situation is that according to the appearance based logic of the military, it is as if the man was never there at all, and his things can therefore not be processed. Another example of such distorted reality is found in McWatt’s

The comedy that Catch-22 brings is ironic in itself, think how can you get humor out of war which entails pain and suffering, that beats me how Heller does it but by whatever means used Heller creates a complete package of humor and real life occurrences which is a great fete in itself. "Though it's comic formula riddle, Heller's novel expresses the apparently inescapable human predicament." (Colmer 213)

Near the end of the novel the soldiers or enlisted men begin to realize a need to value life or even a mere sense of safety. This realization is something that Heller had been satirizing throughout the novel by pointing out that the enlisted men were risking their lives everyday without question for an unstable ad unjust system. How could you have extreme urge to defend your country, if you know first hand the detestable things that are done behind the scenes? It also makes it worse that Colonel Cathcart and Colonel Korn represent the country to many of the men .The Plot of Catch - 22 is understand what Heller meant with his use of satire and how that was significant to the book and the understanding of Yosarrian’s evolution. Heller also has themes within the novel that display different emotions; some of them are Confusion, sanity, hope and pity. Heller as do many other authors wants the reader to also feel those emotions just as the characters. Yosarrian (The main character of the story) has that affect on readers. The main reason he has that affect is because he is the character from the novel that most can relate to and because seems to be the only one to object authority at times.

He believes that his officers and crew members are insane since the officers keep increasing the number of bombing runs a person must complete before being released from duty, and his crew members all aggravate him by crashing their planes, working for both sides of the war, and trying to convince Yossarian to run more missions. Everyone at the base thinks Yossarian is crazy, but Yossarian thinks the same about everyone else. In Joseph Heller’s Catch-22, most literature critics assume that everyone around Yossarian is completely psychotic, but if one were to observe the novel from the perspective of Orr, Clevinger, or one of Yossarian’s crew members, they would realize that Yossarian could easily escape his military duty by running away on a mission rather than dealing with the bureaucracy of the military and trying to feign illness and craziness. Therefore, the author utilizes dark humor that exposes the absurdity of the war and the military, dialogue that displays the insanity between Yossarian, the officers, and crew, and the centralized biased

Power and control plays a big role in the lives many. When power is used as a form of control, it leads to depression and misery in the relationship. This is proven through the themes and symbolism used in the stories Lesson before Dying, The fun they had, The strangers that came to town, and Dolls house through the median of three major unsuccessful relationship: racial tension between the African Americans and the caucasians in the novel Lesson before Dying, Doll’s House demonstrates a controlling relationship can be detrimental for both individuals and The Stranger That Came To Town along with The Fun They Had show that when an individual is suppressed by majority they become despondent.

Cruelty is a callous indifference to, or a pleasure in causing pain and suffering. Catch-22 is filled with cruelty. Throughout this book there are multiple examples of cruelty. Three examples of cruelty make themselves well-known in this book. War cruelty, cruelty against women, and self cruelty are the main forms of cruelty in this book. War is cruel all in itself, so the cruelty of war is prevalent in this novel. The female characters in this book are portrayed inferior to men, and the book makes them to be downgrading. As a result of the women being inferior to the men, the men treat the women cruely, and they make them seem like objects. In Catch-22 written by Joseph Heller the cruelty of war and women are awful, but self cruelty is the

The use of paradox adds not only to the sense of confusion in the book, but to Heller’s use of satire. Most of the novel is a paradox of some sort. Many statements are said then almost immediately contradicted. Catch-22 is a paradox in itself. Heller uses this rhetorical device to criticize the government, military, and overall concept of those in power.

Yossarian cannot go home because his superiors require him for their own personal gain, and it makes no difference what justification they might give for making him stay. The rest of Yossarian’s squadron has a ‘false consciousness’; they are accepting of the overbearing military system, ironically calling Yossarian, “crazy”. “They’re trying to kill me,” Yossarian told him calmly. Clevinger answered. "They're trying to kill everyone". “And what difference does that

Catch-22, by Joseph Heller, is a fictitious novel that depicts life on an American bomber squadron on Pianosa, an island off the coast of Italy, during the closing years of World War II. A bombardier by the name of Yossarian, the main character in the story, is joined by many others to create a comic drama unlike any other. But aside from the entertainment, Heller uses Catch-22 to satirize many aspects of everyday life that consist of hypocrisy, corruption, and insanity. From the laziness of policeman to the fake happiness brought about by money, the novel is painted with a great number of points targeted against the faults of modern society. However, along with these smaller targets, a majority of the Heller’s satire in the novel is

Catch-22 is a novel that satirizes war. Throughout the novel, Joseph Heller creates humor in a dark time. Additionally, he explains the paradox of a “catch-22” and how it represents the hardships of a soldier in World War II. Heller also makes fun of war. Characters, such as Major Major Major Major and General Scheisskopf, have exaggerated names which brings humor to the novel.

 Joseph Heller's narration, dialogue, and characterization in Catch-22 all create a unique perspective of war and our society's bureaucracy. The satire, sarcasm, irony, and general absurdity of the novel provide a view of the irrationality of man's behavior. The horror that is portrayed in Catch-22 is intensified by the humorous way in which it is portrayed. Distortion and exaggeration highlight the characters and scenario while magnifying the confusion. Parallel structure and repetition serve to reinforce the novel's themes.

Catch 22 by Joseph Heller takes place on an Air Force base in Pianosa, Italy and tells the story of a squadron and their experiences during World War II. This story is told mainly through the viewpoint of Captain John Yossarian, and gives us details into the daily lives of Air Force pilots in an active warzone. Catch 22 is now considered as one of the greatest works of all time thanks to its unique criticism of war, contribution to the English language, and peculiar writing style that is reflective of the chaos of war and of the symptoms of PTSD. While most great novels give kudos to the extraordinary feats and glories from war, Catch 22 takes a unique stance as it depicts the other side.

A staple of American literature for more than 50 years, Catch-22 has received both praise and criticism. A common criticism of the novel is it is “repetitious and essentially formless” (Merrill). Robert Merrill explains these criticisms and refutes them by expanding upon Heller’s logic in creating this inconsistent chronology and goes onto make further arguments regarding Yossarian’s morality. Merrill’s explanation of Heller’s structural chaos as an intentional act is accurate. Throughout the novel, events such as Snowden’s death and Yossarian’s time in the hospital are repeated multiple times. This repetition serves to convey Heller’s darkening tone as the novel progresses. For example, Snowden’s death is described differently each of the three times it is mentioned. The first time, Heller keeps the

Joseph Heller’s classic novel Catch 22 is a satirical story written about problems with bureaucracies like the military and the political machine. Yossarian, in his misadventures throughout the book, encounters multiple characters that embody Heller’s views of a bureaucracy. Bureaucracy cares little for the individual person, and those in the bureaucracy do not wish to spend time and energy on people unless it furthers their own ends. Characters like Colonel Cathcart embody the selfishness of people trying to see how they can take advantage of any situation, while Yossarian and the rest of his squadron are portrayed as innocent common men whose lives are in jeopardy because of the self-centeredness of their leadership. These characters assist