Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

“...[A]nything worth dying for ... is certainly worth living for.” 

Catch-22 by Joseph Heller is set during WWII on island of Pianosa (though the setting is of little importance). It follows the story of a common soldier, Yossarian, and his friends. Yossarian has lost many of his colleagues and friends to the war. His problems are further perpetuated by Colonel Cathcar, who keeps raising the number of missions the men had to fly to complete their service. No matter, how much Yossarian longs to be sent home, he is trapped by a ‘Catch-22’. The term, coined by Heller, refers to the paradoxical set of circumstances that the characters are often faced with; especially, the idea that any soldier who is willing to fly is insane and could be sent home if he asked for it, however, as soon as he asks to be sent home he shows concern for his safety and is therefore of a rational mind.

Heller’s satirical book is, despite initial controversy, a defining novel of the 20^th Century. Despite it being set during WWII, the book concerns postmodernist ideas. The book is still taught in schools and contains important critiques that can still be applied to modern society. Any reader has to be prepared to face the absurdity of Heller’s work. Personally, I did not enjoy the book. However, this is because I prefer the structure and predictability of Victorian literature. But I am glad that I read this book. I thought Heller presented very important ideas and I agreed with many of his values; some of these ideas will be explored later in this review.

The novel has become representative of postmodernist literature by its subversion of form to represent the zeitgeist of the time. The book uses an ‘anti-novel’ structure and an ‘anti-hero’. The book rejects many of the traditional novel formats. The book is not written in chronological order and does not follow the structure of introduction, climax and conclusion. Instead the reader is introduced to Yossarian in a hospital talking about events that will only occur at the end of the book. Yossarian talks about the death of Snowden during a mission that isn’t described until the second last chapter of the book. The novel also has an ambiguous ending, living questions unanswered. Yossarian, the protagonist, is not a ‘hero’. Yossarian has many faults and is quite insane – or at actually he is quite sane in an insane world. Yossarian does not have the courage and intengrity that heroes often display. The whole plot follows Yossarian’s plan to escape, including the lies he creates to stay in a hospital where he can escape his duties. These are two of the main ways that Heller changes the format of books in order to represent the new values of the postmodern world.

Themes

Catch-22 deals with the changing paradigms of the Post-World War II Western culture; to the point that is follows, almost precisely, my own school education on after the bomb literature. The book explores the loss of religious beliefs in a world that had been capable of creating the abhorrent and horrific events of the war and the nuclear bomb. The main character is an atheist, and believes that he’s seen too much human suffering to believe that a God would allow so much torment. The chaplain, himself, begins to question his own values. By the end of the novel, he has ‘tricked’ himself into sinning and doesn’t believe that God will actually harm him for his deeds.

The novel shows war to be absurd and repugnant. The novel presents an unsentimental vision of war; not the romantic and glorified versions views of war that were and are represented in some media and supported by governments to inspire patriotism and nationalism. Instead, the book shows that war is not moral and cannot be justified. Heller explores the lives of the common soldier to show how they are not fighting for their country or even against the enemy; instead, soldiers are fighting for the pride of the bureaucracy. Soldiers are sent to fight in places that are not strategic but will help get a colonel into a journal. The importance of ‘bomb patterns’ become more important than the success of their missions. It shows the superficiality of the individual battles and the ego of the commanders. Yossarian, who sees the war clearly, wants to run away and understands that he being there is not helping his country win the war. All characters are shown to be absurd and have their own ‘insanity’ in order to show the dehumanisation of the world. Some of this blame is also put on industry.

The materialistic society and the greed of businessmen for power and riches is demonstrated through Milo. Milo is a caricature of a savvy businessman. In the capitalist context of the West, it is the rich business owners who are ruling the country and controlling the people. Through M&M Enterprise, Heller explores the power that industry has on the individual. This becomes clear when the reader finds out the Milo is supporting both sides of the war by providing information and supplies to both sides. This is a very true comment on society. Although war profiteering has become illegal in America, the USA still tends to gain from the sale of weapons to other countries. Even in the Iraq conflicts and IS both sides have used American manufactured weapons. America also profits from the sale of armaments to many opposing small African countries. Milo’s power, however, can be applied to even further than in the war context. Milo becomes a symbol of the ironic paradox of the capitalist ‘freedom’. The west fought for individual freedom in World War II. However, individuals are shown not be free and are instead controlled by authority and by businessmen. Businesses sell the lifestyle and ideas that will profit them and not the individual.

There are many more ideas, such as the inevitability of death, but I feel those were the ones that stood out for me. I am hesitant to recommend Catch-22 for teenagers but I know that the ideas presented are quite important. This is a good book to study for school even if it’s not the easiest of reads. It seems that nothing happens and yet, by the end, Heller has introduced and critiques many values and beliefs. This is definitely a text for more advanced readers and should be followed with a quick research of themes in order to fully grasp the novel.