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Catch 22 By Joseph Heller

Decent Essays

Lieutenant General Kenneth James once said: “War doesn 't make boys men it makes men dead.” This quote relates directly to the environment created in the novel Catch 22 by Joseph Heller. In the novel, Heller depicts a WWII army base on the island of Pianosa containing self-interested soldiers, each with their own abnormalities. These soldiers have to complete a certain amount of missions in order to be sent home, however, once the soldiers get near the total number required, the higher ranked officials raise the number of required missions, making it impossible to be released. As a result, Heller argues that figurative and literal death is inevitable as the war is inescapable due to the corruption of high ranked officials. Yossarian and …show more content…

This is ironic as Milo thinks first of the syndicate rather than helping his fellow soldiers (Snowden) survive. Furthermore, Milo is so corrupt that he would rather turn a profit by selling medical resources necessary for the survival of his fellow soldiers. Moreover, Yossarian and his fellow soldiers are dying physically and mentally due to the outrageous concept of Catch-22 created by high ranking officials such as Milo Minderbinder.
After fighting a war against General Dreedle, General Peckem finally takes over Dreedle 's role as superior commanding officer, only to have Scheisskopf replace him because of how unethical the high ranked officials are. Colonel Korn introduces the news to the chaplain: “General Dreedle is out, Padre. And General Peckem is in. We have a new wing commander” (320). Instead of fighting against the enemy, General Peckem fought against General Dreedle in an attempt to receive his position, however, due to the incompetence of the higher ranked officials, Peckem ends up losing the position to Scheisskopf. When Peckem learns the news that Scheisskopf took over his position, he is petrified: “General Peckem let out a sharp cry. “Oh, my God!” he wailed, and all his practical composure went up in hysteria. “Scheisskopf in charge? Scheisskopf?” He pressed his fists down on his eyes with horror” (390). Peckem, after finally receiving General Dreedle 's position as a superior commanding

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