Post Number Two: Post Harder

Alex Dzwierzynski

Post Number Two

In Joseph Heller’s Catch-22, the titular conundrum plays a major role as a motif throughout the novel. But before I go into detail on the various instances in which a Catch-22 appears, I feel it vital to explain the concept of Catch-22, as it can be quite confusing. A Catch-22 refers to a piece of circling reasoning that keeps one trapped in a paradox due to contradicting rules. As the book explains, the catch of Catch-22, is “the best there is” (55). Yossarian, the main character experiences this excellent catch firsthand when he decides to be grounded by reason of insanity due to a “rule that states that the Doc Daneeka, the company’s doctor has “to ground anyone who’s crazy” (54). Now that rule makes perfect sense, no one in their right mind would want someone crazy anywhere near an airplane, especially one filled with explosives like the military ones. But, upon further inspection of the rule, we the reader finds the Catch-22. As Doc Daneeka explains, he can ground anyone, “but first he ask to ask me to,” as “that’s part of the rule” (54). However, a crazy person would never ask to be grounded because they are crazy and don’t know any better. If a pilot does ask to be grounded in order to get out of flying, Doc Daneeka knows that they are sane because “anyone who wants to get out of combat duty isn’t really crazy,” as no sane person would want to put their life at risk by flying airplanes (55). Thus, crazy or not, the soldiers are stuck in a Catch-22, if they ask to be grounded, they are obviously sane and thus will not be grounded.

            However, while that certainly is the most obvious example of Catch-22 throughout the novel, there are many more, with most of them relating to how the army forces its men to follow its absurd rules, even if they contradict each other. For example, throughout the novel, the required number of missions a pilot has to fly before they can go home is constantly raised, much to the annoyance of Yossarian. Yossarian and fellow pilot Hungary Joe keep flying the required number of missions only to see them raised. Yossarian eventually learns about the Catch-22 that’s keeping him trapped. Although “forty missions is all you have to fly as far as the Twenty-seventh Air Force Headquarters are concerned,” it is required that you also obey your commanding officer at all costs (67). And, if your commanding officers disobeyed a “Twenty-seventh Air Force order by making you fly more missions, you’d still have to fly them, or you’d be guilty of disobeying an order of his,” which would result in a punishment of more missions for not following your commanding officers orders (67-68). Thus once again, Yossarian is stuck in a Catch-22, forced to do more than required in order to follow his commanding officers orders.