Final Comments on Catch-22
I guess this is where we can all wrap up with our final comments and reflections on Heller's snazzy little book. I think some good topics would be final thoughts on what Heller specifically was trying to communicate about WWII and war in general through his book, whether you guys still think Yossarian is just as crazy as all the other characters, what you feel the irony brought to the book, why there was continually all the silly silly silly character interplay, et cetera et cetera. Remember the developmental threads we decided to follow during the book club meeting, i.e. why Yossarian appears to be the central character. Blog away!
posted by JananaC at 1/22/2007 08:07:00 PM
1 Comments:
Okay. So I know I said I was disinclined to really assert anything at the time of my last blog, but I guess I'll go ahead and take the leap now (might as well right?). Alright, so by the end of the book, you sort of look back in retrospect at Catch-22 as a whole--the threads you decided to follow throughout the story et cetera et cetera--and I guess I've come to the conclusion that the two elements bearing the greatest brunt on the receiving end of all of Heller's satirical onslaught are interrelated (!). It seems that all of Heller's criticisms on society, especially members of the American middle-class, when you take a step back and sort of look at the collective picture, the text continually indicates that these sorts of people in society all seem to contribute to the perpetuation and prolongment of the war. I guess it should have been more evident earlier on to me that the two most satirized elements in Catch were related to one another (though I’m almost positive I recall having alluded to it briefly in one of my earlier blogs...) Anywho. I spent some time trying to categorize the characters in the book and I came up with the following topics, among a few others: those characters who mindlessly obey the military superiors, those military superiors whose ambitions are really meaningless, and worthless for that matter, those who never question the sorts of rules, regulations, and catch-22's in the military and their lives (pretty much everyone except Yo-yo), et cetera. The book seems to have constantly satirized how meaningless, worthless, and/or senseless a lot of things American middle-class society subscribe to, value, and stuff.
Alright, so I think if at first it's a bit hazy and unclear why Yossarian was made the main character--there are just woop woop signals everywhere particularly towards the conclusion of the story. First off, Yossarian is the only one who ever questions and refuses to completely and passively accept the catch-22's. He seems to have more moral character than a lot of the other characters too. It's really evident towards the end when i) he tries to find Nately's whore's little sister and shows concern for her safety and all 2) there was also a lot of compassion shown on his part in the chapter about Snowden and his death 3) he took the honorable way and didn't go through with the sketchy deal with Colonel Korn and Cathcart and the list goes on. Especially when you take into consideration the selfishness and perverseness of the other characters, Yossarian (even though not always the angel himself) seems to--this is sort of funny--take his spot up on the moral high ground. It seems evident that Heller is more inclined to Yossarian's character, and I think you get through to a load of the messages the book is intended to communicate if you sort of see the separation and disconnects between Yo-yo and the other characters (Doc Daneeka for example, that sleezy ol’...). I think at the same time though, Heller gets us to be able to look on the characters as a whole group and be all charmed and stuff by them. You sort of can't help but sort of have a little fondness for all their craziness and wacko anomalies and idiosyncrasies by the end of the novel (even though it's more like their individual idiosyncrasies are representative of idiosyncrasies in society...wait…which come from the individuals....okay I'm stopping.).
Oh! Oh! Alright guys, I don't know if you're ready for this, but I'm going to say it anyways! Heller published a SEQUEL to Catch-22 (EEEEK!) some dozen or odd years ago. It has Yossarian and Milo and a jolly ol' basketful of the other characters too, and it follows them in their current lives after their Pianosa days.
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