Catch-22, Author Joseph Heller
Many people probably had to read Catch-22 for school at some point. Somehow, I was never assigned it for any literature class. I am so glad that I waited until adulthood to try reading this classic though. It’s mandatory that you understand how absolutely foolish bureaucracy can be before you are able to enjoy this book.
This classic was adapted into a miniseries directed by George Clooney. Due to the episodic nature of the storytelling a miniseries seems much better suited for the material than a feature length film.
Yossarian is in the military during war time. He has figured out that he can spend the bulk of his time faking sick in the hospital ward and that this is the best way to ride out the war. Some may call him a slacker or a coward, he would agree.
It’s interesting to see a military novel about characters who are not nationalists or pro military in any way. These men are there against their will, disillusioned with the fantasy of wartime pride, or only there to avoid responsibilities back home. These are the characters whose stories get hidden behind propaganda.
The titular Catch-22 in Catch-22 is basically that a solider can be sent home if they’re deemed crazy. They’d have to be crazy to want to keep flying planes in war. But if they’re sane enough to know flying planes in war is crazy they’re sane enough to keep flying planes in war. It’s a real conundrum.
The novel is told through individual stories, loosely connected in time and place. Chapters will focus on different characters and time bounces around with little context. This all serves to illustrate how redundant government life can be and how inconsequential a sequence of events can be.
The novel also plays a lot with language. Puns, plays on words, and deep sarcasm are common here. Characters are built from irony. It takes a dry wit to appreciate this book but if you can find the humor you’re in for a treat.
That is, until it hits you with an emotional bullet. The traumas of war are few and far between on these pages but when they appear they are direct and powerful. Death is handled in a very straight-forward manner and then it is revealed why it has to be.
Death is a part of war and those that have experienced more of it are going to handle it differently than someone’s first time. Catch-22 does not romanticize any “honorable” deaths.
This novel has earned its place among classics. It’s clever, profound, thought-provoking, laugh out loud funny, and unpredictable. Read it as an adult after you’ve had to deal with the consequences of a form being filled out incorrectly and how impossible it is to rectify that mistake.
5/5 planes ✈✈✈✈✈
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Buy it here: Catch-22: 50th Anniversary Edition
For more classic American Literature check out Little, Big
FAQ
Essentially, a catch-22 is a paradox. In the book it states that a soldier can return home from war if he’s deemed crazy. A soldier would have to be crazy to want to fly planes in war. However, if they’re sane enough to know that flying a plane in war is crazy they are ruled sane. Thus the paradox. The soldiers want to go home but cannot.
Joseph Heller
The original reason for banning the novel was profanity and crass language. Additional complaints have been brought up of the women in the book all being prostitutes.
Thanks for a reminder of an excellent read.