According to Catch-22, only a lunatic can be exempted from flying duty, but he must apply for it himself; and the person who can apply for this must not be crazy, so he still has to fly. The protagonist Yossarian in "Catch-22" is an American bomber in World War II. Catch-22 forces him to live on the line of life and death. At the same time, he also discovers that there are such absurd traps hidden everywhere in the world. Today, Catch-22 has become an idiomatic expression in English, referring to logic that seems reasonable but is actually crazy and absurd. Catch-22 is synonymous with institutionalized madness. This is an eternal question in human society: In a crazy world, who is the madman?
Reader comments
It's hard for me to describe my feelings after reading this book. I only felt scared and excited in my heart. The fear is that the world and characters written by the author are so abstract and absurd, but the more I read, the more I feel that there is truth in this absurdity. Jisei, in this world that seems to be reflected in a distorted mirror, has seen the twisted souls of some modern people. It broke my illusions about the beauty of this world, used its sarcastic language to carve out the ugliness of the world in front of my eyes, and shouted in my ears indignantly at "'Catch-22"!
But I am deeply inspired. As the saying goes, "If the mountain does not come to me, I will walk towards the mountain." Human beings will always have the courage to step forward and the hope of opening up the future! You can't imagine how excited and touched I was after learning about Orr's feat at the end. In my heart, my heartbeat is like a roaring drum, and my heartbeat is like a surging ocean wave, sweeping me up and throwing me away; before my eyes, the clues in the book converge at one point, and the chaotic narrative structure of time and space is reorganized here, and the book glows with another charm!
Ps: I think this is a book with a slight reading threshold. The front part is not particularly attractive. The main reason is that the writing method used by the author is very unique. It feels quite smooth as you read it. And as you go to the back, I feel that the author will dig deeper and deeper into human nature. In short, I think reading this book will give people a very special and interesting reading experience. You might as well give it a try. (Purely a personal opinion, personal subjective color is relatively strong)
Heller used American humor to ridicule Catch-22. He mocked the U. S. Air Force during World War II with black humor, strong American patriotism, absolute obedience, the absolutely corrupt, absolutely corrupt U. S. Air Force in World War II, the profit-seeking super trust Milo who bought and sold strategic materials, huge interest groups... Crazy Catch-22, crazy world, anti-war declaration.
During World War II, the U. S. Military had a supreme sense of morality. However, in Heller's writings, the U. S. Military camps were filled with all kinds of absurdities and repeated trampling on human dignity. Those who praised the war the most were never the people who truly risked their lives on the front line, the impassioned officers. Maybe they didn't even understand the battle map, and the American soldiers who raped civilian girls could use "patriotism" as a shield. Doctor Daniel, who was not dead, was forcibly pronounced dead because of the records, and the dead sergeant who had not reported for duty was still alive because he could not find the records...
Damn, I really like this book. War turns people into madmen. We come together because of war and live crazy. Soldiers were just a small embellishment on the general's military medal. They died in droves. Death happened countless times.
No matter how crazy we get, we all have the courage to escape, and to hell with that Catch-22!
Just like the company I worked for before, there were many unreasonable rules that made people laugh or cry. Yossarian in the book is like each of us, trying to find his own way of survival in this crazy world. I especially liked the absurd experiences of Yossarian and his teammates in the war, which made me think more deeply about war and human nature. This book is really worth reading!
He got a little closer to Qi Xia
Reading "Catch-22" leaves one with deep sadness and a chill in the heart. They are wrapped in a sense of vanity and comedy, which seems bizarre but extremely real. "There is nothing, something out of nothing, renege on promises, eager for quick success, profit-oriented, shameless, dirty, bloodthirsty and cruel, you are fish and meat, I am swordsman..." Countless words are concretely expressed by it. It is the reality of the military, politics, and social ecology of a "certain" country during World War II. It is the foundation and underlying logic of the existence of a "certain" country. It is the extreme distress and suffering, addiction and surrender, sorrow and destruction that many lives were forced to suffer. Of course, there are also calm reflections and struggles in the book, but these forces are very small and almost never see the light of day... World War II has slowly gone away, but the "Catch-22" is still there.
This is when I read this book again after I don't know how many years have passed. That was because I was very young and knew the words in the book but did not understand its meaning. At the same time, I remembered that I was in high school and read in an English learning journal. Decades have passed and I don't remember the specific plot. I only remember that the background of the story was the American Civil War. A grandmother took her grandson with her. There was only one old man and one young child in the family. Both men and adult women died on the battlefield. The grandmother looked at her grandson who was sleeping soundly on the bed. The lights of the kerosene lamp danced. The grandmother made up her mind and walked to the bedside and bit off her little grandson's little finger. Her grandson's screams pierced the silent night sky, but the grandmother was relieved. This detail has always been engraved in my mind. At that time, I didn't understand why my grandmother bit off her grandson's upper finger. Later, I gradually understood that my grandmother wanted to protect and hope that her grandson would live and not go to the battlefield.
This Catch-22 book is full of black humor. In any era, war is cruel, and pain and disease are better choices than death. Nowadays, too, life is difficult, and internal and external spirals make people extremely stressed. But compared to the war outside, we can still live, eat, and sleep peacefully without fear of shells falling on us at any time or fighter planes flying above our heads. Although life is difficult, it is even more lucky to be alive.
Regardless of success or failure, at least give it a try
It's hard for me to describe my feelings after reading this book. I only felt scared and excited in my heart. The fear is that the world and characters written by the author are so abstract and absurd, but the more I read, the more I feel that there is truth in this absurdity. Jisei, in this world that seems to be reflected in a distorted mirror, has seen the twisted souls of some modern people. It broke my illusions about the beauty of this world, used its sarcastic language to carve out the ugliness of the world in front of my eyes, and shouted in my ears indignantly at "'Catch-22"! But I am deeply inspired. As the saying goes, "If the mountain does not come to me, I will walk towards the mountain." Human beings will always have the courage to step forward and the hope of opening up the future! You can't imagine how excited and touched I was after learning about Orr's feat at the end. In my heart, my heartbeat is like a roaring drum, and my heartbeat is like a surging ocean wave, sweeping me up and throwing me away; before my eyes, the clues in the book converge at one point, and the chaotic narrative structure of time and space is reorganized here, and the book glows with another charm! Ps: I think this is a book with a slight reading threshold. The front part is not particularly attractive. The main reason is that the writing method used by the author is very unique. It feels quite smooth as you read it. And as you go to the back, I feel that the author will dig deeper and deeper into human nature. In short, I think reading this book will give people a very special and interesting reading experience. You might as well give it a try. (Purely a personal opinion, personal subjective color is relatively strong)
Heller used American humor to ridicule Catch-22. He mocked the U. S. Air Force during World War II with black humor, strong American patriotism, absolute obedience, the absolutely corrupt, absolutely corrupt U. S. Air Force in World War II, the profit-seeking super trust Milo who bought and sold strategic materials, huge interest groups... Crazy Catch-22, crazy world, anti-war declaration. During World War II, the U. S. Military had a supreme sense of morality. However, in Heller's writings, the U. S. Military camps were filled with all kinds of absurdities and repeated trampling on human dignity. Those who praised the war the most were never the people who truly risked their lives on the front line, the impassioned officers. Maybe they didn't even understand the battle map, and the American soldiers who raped civilian girls could use "patriotism" as a shield. Doctor Daniel, who was not dead, was forcibly pronounced dead because of the records, and the dead sergeant who had not reported for duty was still alive because he could not find the records...
Damn, I really like this book. War turns people into madmen. We come together because of war and live crazy. Soldiers were just a small embellishment on the general's military medal. They died in droves. Death happened countless times. No matter how crazy we get, we all have the courage to escape, and to hell with that Catch-22!
Just like the company I worked for before, there were many unreasonable rules that made people laugh or cry. Yossarian in the book is like each of us, trying to find his own way of survival in this crazy world. I especially liked the absurd experiences of Yossarian and his teammates in the war, which made me think more deeply about war and human nature. This book is really worth reading!
He got a little closer to Qi Xia
Reading "Catch-22" leaves one with deep sadness and a chill in the heart. They are wrapped in a sense of vanity and comedy, which seems bizarre but extremely real. "There is nothing, something out of nothing, renege on promises, eager for quick success, profit-oriented, shameless, dirty, bloodthirsty and cruel, you are fish and meat, I am swordsman..." Countless words are concretely expressed by it. It is the reality of the military, politics, and social ecology of a "certain" country during World War II. It is the foundation and underlying logic of the existence of a "certain" country. It is the extreme distress and suffering, addiction and surrender, sorrow and destruction that many lives were forced to suffer. Of course, there are also calm reflections and struggles in the book, but these forces are very small and almost never see the light of day... World War II has slowly gone away, but the "Catch-22" is still there.
This is when I read this book again after I don't know how many years have passed. That was because I was very young and knew the words in the book but did not understand its meaning. At the same time, I remembered that I was in high school and read in an English learning journal. Decades have passed and I don't remember the specific plot. I only remember that the background of the story was the American Civil War. A grandmother took her grandson with her. There was only one old man and one young child in the family. Both men and adult women died on the battlefield. The grandmother looked at her grandson who was sleeping soundly on the bed. The lights of the kerosene lamp danced. The grandmother made up her mind and walked to the bedside and bit off her little grandson's little finger. Her grandson's screams pierced the silent night sky, but the grandmother was relieved. This detail has always been engraved in my mind. At that time, I didn't understand why my grandmother bit off her grandson's upper finger. Later, I gradually understood that my grandmother wanted to protect and hope that her grandson would live and not go to the battlefield. This Catch-22 book is full of black humor. In any era, war is cruel, and pain and disease are better choices than death. Nowadays, too, life is difficult, and internal and external spirals make people extremely stressed. But compared to the war outside, we can still live, eat, and sleep peacefully without fear of shells falling on us at any time or fighter planes flying above our heads. Although life is difficult, it is even more lucky to be alive.
Regardless of success or failure, at least give it a try