Catch221

A detailed Summary of Catch221

The name of the novel I read is Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. This novel's uniqueness makes it hard to classify but I would classify it as an anti-war novel. The main theme of the novel is one of hope and freedom from the barbaric grasp of war. Heller uses World War II as an almost invisible framework in which he places a number of vaguely related stories presented in no particular chronological order, although the final narrative does tie them all together. Catch-22 was written in a very comical style. It displays the foolishness of wars and the inherent violence and idiotic bureaucracy while eliminating the glory, honor and graphic depictions so often included in wartime novels. Heller uses loads of humor to convey his messages and while the main theme is obvious to the reader, there are many hidden and double meanings buried in the intriguing stories.

I selected this novel because it was highly recommended by a close friend and I definitely enjoyed it. Heller's humor is what I liked most about the novel. The novel is guaranteed to bring a smile to anyone's face and I absolutely loved the characters. On the other hand, I found his lack of timeline very frustrating and confusing. Some may consider this ingenious but

Yossarian begins to have a relationship with the nurse he fondled, Nurse Duckett. One day, while making love to her on the beach, his pilot, McWatt flies a little too close to the shore and slices a man in half with the propeller. McWatt refuses to land the plane and then crashes it into the side of a mountain. Doc Daneeka was supposed to be on that flight according to the paperwork even though he wasn't. Nevertheless, he is presumed dead. His wife begins to receive all types of insurance money and military aid for his death and when Doc writes her a letter pleading for her to explain to the authorities that he really is alive, she ignores it and moves away with no forwarding address.

I believe that at least one of the message's Heller was trying to get across is the point that war really is a terrible, dehumanizing thing. Throughout the book, there are countless examples of how people are horribly affected by the war. One example is Hungry Joe experiencing horrifying nightmares. Another example is the chaplain beginning to doubt his faith and beliefs all because of the war. Another sad effect of the war is the suicide of Yossarian's pilot, McWatt. He was only doing the thing he enjoyed most, flying, and that drove him to kill himself. And how can we forget Yossarian who went from being a brave bombardier to almost betraying his dead friends and living his life as a hypocrite. To me, that message is very clear.

Heller also tries to show us that despite the atrocity of war, the human spirit can survive and overcome. Clevinger is the first example of this as he plans his escape and then disappears into a cloud. Orr also escaped and showed that he was unwilling to allow the war to take away his freedom and right to happiness. Yossarian's story is the most intriguing and inspirational. His fight to live and his strong sense of survival is the backbone of the book.

When I first began the novel, I was intrigued by the name Yossarian. I had never heard the name before and I knew from the beginning that he would be an interesting character. I thought he was very comical as were many of the other characters so I enjoyed the first few chapters.

Heller's complicated yet subtle double meanings and satirical style of writing make this a novel a classic. It was very enjoyable reading and while I would have enjoyed a few more climaxes, I like the relaxed feeling the novel game me. The author makes it aware that people are dying but he uses the war as an almost invisible backdrop for a comedy and its not until late in the movie that it becomes obvious how sad of a situation Yossarian really is in. He does all this while communicating his strong beliefs of war and humanity. I applaud Joseph Heller for Catch-22.

Some common words found in the essay are:
Colonel Cathcart, War II, Sweden Yossarian, Hungry Joe, Colonel Cathcart's, Doc Daneeka, Captain Black's, Bologna Yossarian, Americans Americans, Milo Throughout, colonel cathcart, nately's whore, sent home, yossarian's squadron, double meanings, runs distance, raises missions, black market, nately's death, doc daneeka, sent home yossarian, betraying dead friends, responsible nately's death, nately's death attempts, yossarian responsible nately's,

Approximate Word count = 2631
Approximate Pages = 11 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Novels