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Summary: Catch-22
Review: Catch-22 By Joseph Heller (463 pages)Book Description History teaches World War II from a bystander's point of view, when in reality the truth comes from the diction of the people that were actually there. Published first in 1955, Catch-22 is an incredible story of life during World War II and many stories of soldiers during battle. Although, there are handfuls of characters, the storyline follows the life of a young American bomber by the name of Yossarian, and his struggles to break free of the war. Life for everyone living near and around Yossarian off of the coast of Italy is tragic and very authentic. The men experience fear, love and hatred, murder, confusion, and the yearning desire to go home. Review Catch-22 is an astounding view of war, and its effects on its participants. Although slow and complicated at first, the conversations and humor make it a favorite read and one that can't be put down until finished. It shows the realities of World War II and how victory comes with consequences. Through Yossarian's stay in Italy, the reader becomes sympathetic to Yossarian and his comrades. They struggle through fear of the slightest things and are almost certain they will not arrive home alive. The men are classified as psychotic, and through their conversations the reader gains a sense of humor of all the many predicaments they get themselves into. Heller emphasizes the importance of every page through tricky conversations that requires the reader's devout attention. He doesn't leave one stone unturned. Catch-22 is very descriptive and not an easy read, but one that will leave the reader with better knowledge of life during World War II. It is a moving novel for both young and old, and reminds the reader that World War II will not be forgotten.
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Summary: Catch-22, a must read war book
Review: Book Description The novel Catch-22 shows a unique view of World War II. The Story is told in third person and focuses on a colorful character named Yossarian. It takes place in Italy during WWII. The men in the squadron attempt to do their missions and survive. However they keep getting caught in absurd rules that present a no-win situation. The story unfold turning from hilarious comedy to a serious plot. The book is very entertaining as the men try to beat the bureaucratic military system. Review Catch-22 provides extreme entertainment and with a wonderful plot and hilarious comedy. It is a classic satire. It provides a new point of view for war, showing the craziness and absurdities of war. The book starts off being kind of hard to follow with Heller's unique use of paradoxes and oxymoron's. That plus the fact that the story is not told in chronological order makes it a little rough at first. However once into the book it is one of the best books ever written. Catch-22 is a set of rules that the men in the airforce have to follow. At first some of them are confusing and contradicting, but once the reader has a feeling for the style it becomes funny. Everything contradicting everything else the characters soon go crazy. If one wishes to find out what a catch-22 really is then should read this awesome book by Joseph Heller.
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Summary: a little predictable
Review: Heller's novel gave our language a new term, but the popularity of it should be tempered by its overriding flaw--it's contrived. But go ahead and read this book for entertainment, though I don't believe you will learn much or perceive insights into war, institutional behavior, etc.
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Summary: In-depth analysis for students
Review: Three new additions to Harold Bloom's 'Modern Critical Interpretations' ($36.95 each) series will reach high school into college levels, compiling critical articles from a variety of sources and offering the in-depth analysis students will need to assist on detailed reports of an author's single work. Joseph Heller's Catch 22 (0-7910-5927-8) provides articles which examine how the sane can survive under insane wartime circumstances; Elie Wiesel's Night (5924-3) gathers critical writings on his story of life in a Nazi concentration camp, and the focus on Tolkien's Lord Of The Rings (5665-1) considers the contents and impact of the three-volume epic fantasy. All include essays by notable critics who offer different interpretations and focus perfect for classroom discussion or essay pursuit.
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Summary: It's not about war, stupid
Review: When Joseph Heller's Catch-22 was published in the United States in 1961, many people believed that the book bashed war and the military. Returning the favor, many critics condemned the book. Some, however, defended Heller, contending that the book was in fact not about war or the military, but was a commentary on American society. Furthermore, Heller dwells on a few specific aspects of American society, like the emergence of mega-corporations. "Everyone in my book accuses everyone else of being crazy. Frankly I think that the whole society is nuts - and the question is: what does a sane man do in an insane society?" -Joseph Heller (AP) As Norman Podhoretz said in his essay, "Looking Back At Catch-22," Heller's real subject was the nature of American society at the time he wrote this book. But how? It sure seems as though this is a novel about war. The setting is in Italy during World War II. The characters fly combat missions on a daily basis. They act like soldiers. In fact, they are soldiers. So how can this novel not be about war? It is not about war because of the meaning buried within the narrative - the war serves only as a vehicle for Heller's message. But what is Heller's message? The novel jumps from place to place, almost illogically, perhaps like American society. So how do we figure out his message? By carefully reading the lines of text, and in between the lines, we see that Heller thinks that American society is crazy. "What would they do to me," he asked in confidential tones, "if I refused to fly them?" "We'd probably shoot you," ex-P.F.C. Wintergreen replied. "We?" Yossarian cried in surprise. "What do you mean, we? Since when are you on their side?" "If you're going to be shot, whose side do you expect me to be on?" ex-P.F.C. Wintergreen retorted. And perhaps this exchange between ex-P.F.C. Wintergreen and Yossarian is a commentary on how people in this country have no sense of loyalty to anything. Reading into his commentary, we see that Heller has lost hope for society. During the writing of this book, companies merged and "acquired" each other right and left. From this merger and acquisition frenzy came the term "corporate America." Once again, Heller deems this to be crazy, so he makes fun of it. In the book, Milo's syndicate, M&M Industries, represents one such large corporation. He claims that if the syndicate makes a profit then it is good for everyone. This is analogous to corporations that claim that if they merge, they will be able to provide a better product, which is better for the consumer. Well, in reality, it cuts jobs and thus creates larger profits for the corporation. Nonetheless, corporations present some damn good arguments for merging, just as Milo presents some damn good arguments for why the syndicate is good for everyone - "everyone gets a share" (Heller). Furthermore, M&M Industries exhibits some organized crime structure as well. Perhaps Heller is saying that the size and political power of these mega-corporations (which were nothing like the corporations today vis-à-vis BP-Amoco, Microsoft, AOL/Netscape-Time Warner, etc.) makes them too powerful, and that they can do anything that they please, legal, quasi-legal, or blatantly illegal, much like organized crime. To put it bluntly: it's not about war, stupid. What it is about is American society and how it is spiraling downward towards oblivion. Furthermore, Heller thinks he is the only sane one in an insane world - like Yossarian. Heller thinks that everyone is crazy, and so he broadcasts his message to everyone via his book - if they are sane enough to decode his message - a catch-22 in and of itself. "It used to shock me and alarm me and discourage me that there was a general decline of everything of value. But it doesn't surprise me anymore. It seems inevitable and natural and there's no way to resist it." -Joseph Heller (AP)
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Summary: ok but...
Review: this is an ok book, but the movie was much better, the book drags a little too much, you would also need to read it a few times to really understand what the author is trying to say.
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Summary: The Best Book Ever
Review: I started off reading Catch-22 slowly, not really getting into it, but that quickly changed. By the time I hit about page 110, I was hooked. From then on I spent all my free time reading it. This book is not only the best overall of books I've read, but it is by far the funniest. The hilarious schemes concocted by Milo to the hilariously sane logic of self-preservation provided by Yosarian make this book the best. That's all I have to say, read it, you'll love it.
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Summary: Ignore the length
Review: Ignore the length of this big book -- it's like a series of wacky SNL skits fused with a morbid and very cynical worldview, and it goes by very quickly....
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Summary: One of a Kind
Review: Catch-22 is most definately the best book I have ever read. Heller brilliantly portrays the hellish experiences of war with hilarity and horror. Catch-22 is full of ironic contradictions and farcical ancedotes. However, Heller in no way evades or desensitizes the atrocities of war. Fortunately, just when Heller begins to use excessive military jargon, he digresses to a comedic story about one of the men. The keeps the average civilian enraptured. Heller's masterpiece is a book for the satirically minded. Catch-22 should be read by all.
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Summary: Diction and Irony is Catch - 22
Review: Throughout Catch - 22, Joseph Heller utilizes diction and irony to satirize the inner workings of the Armed Forces. By exercising his command of the English language, Heller comically portrays the Army in a way that makes the reader just have to laugh. The easiest examples of this comedy are some of the names the characters in the novel receive. The character Major ------- de Coverley is a symbol for the lengths the military will go to simply keep a secret, no matter how unimportant it may be. Throughout the entire novel Heller never once tells the reader de Coverley's first name. Another character that further illuminates the problems that plague the Army is Major Major Major. When this character enrolls in the Armed Forces, he serves as a symbol of how the military promotes it's soldiers, not by merit, but simply because the "bigwigs" feel like promoting someone. By promoting Major Major Major to a Major from a Private simply because some General thinks that it sounds good, creates a ridiculous situation that enables the reader to laugh at the Army that created it. Aside from his excellent word choice, Heller fills Catch - 22 with massive amounts of irony to instill in the reader a sense of hilarity toward the Armed Forces. When Yossarian is attending a question and answer session he and some other pilots as questions that have no answers such as "Why is Hitler?" This leads Colonel Korn to ironically proclaim that the only people who can ask questions are the people who never ask questions. Soon after, because no one was asking questions, the classes where considered worthless because Colonel Korn did not consider it necessary to try and educate people who never questioned anything. This shows how the Army will do something so stupid as give Colonel Korn orders, which achieve nothing, and call this a success. Also when Yossarian is sick in the hospital, the army makes him switch beds because the family of a man who just died has arrived and want to see him. Now, instead of telling the family that their son is dead already, they tell Yossarian to play along. But when the family comes to talk to him, Yossarian doesn't tell them that he's their son, he tells them that his name is Yossarian not Guiseppe. Normally people would think that perhaps they have the wrong person, but they persevere and take it in stride that he claims his name is Yossarian. The brother constantly reminds them that Yossarian is Yossarian but the parents don't listen because don't think that the army would lie to them, and yet in reality it did. Another good example of irony is when Doc Daneeka dies. On paper it shows that Daneeka was supposed to be in the plane that crashed, so Sergeant Knight assumes Daneeka is dead. Yet, when the doctor protests to Knight that he's alive, Knight just ignores him because he knows Daneeka is dead regardless of what Daneeka himself says. Here Heller is making fun of how the Army deals with people strictly on paper and not as the people who they really are. Another example of this is when Yossarian sits in the hospital bed with the wrong nametag, because he wants to sit next to his friend Dunbar. After extensive talks with a psychiatrist, Yossarian is ruled to be insane, and is to be sent home. But because of the wrong nametag and the fact the Army deals with people on paper, the person who's name is on Yossarian's nametag is sent home while Yossarian, the one who actually is crazy, is made to stay and continue fighting. To show the corruption of the Army, Heller uses situation irony when Milo Minderbinder bombs his own squadron for a profit. Now instead of being punished like the reader would normally think he would be, Milo is congratulated on how much money he made because all the bigwigs get a portion of the profits that Milo makes. By his word choice and hilarious irony, Heller creates a comedic atmosphere perfect for his satirical portrayal of the Army.
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