Whew, I finished reading Catch-22 last night and am finally done broadening my cultural horizons for the summer. A couple weeks ago, I posted my current reading list and mentioned that Joseph Heller’s WWII novel hadn’t captured my interest. Still, I slogged on, determined to finish the modern classic with the title that’s become an American idiom for no win situations, double binds, and hamster wheel thinking.
I hoped it would grow on me. But it didn’t. The book’s satirical look at the ending months of WWII in Italy read like an unedited MASH rerun. Of course, the implications of that comparison are entirely unfair because the book came out long before MASH. In fact Catch-22 may have planted the idea for MASH in the heads of its creators. And I’m pretty sure the book was required reading for the writers and actors who were part of the movie and TV series.
But this review is about Catch-22, not MASH. So I’m trying to imagine the effect the book had when it was published in 1961. It’s irreverent tone, non-chronological progression, and jaded view of military leadership would have been a threat to the straight-laced American populace in those days. For veterans of WWII, it must have been a slap in the face. But to those watching the Viet Nam War progress, it was a prophetic indictment of unfolding events. For the young men sent to Viet Nam, it spoke truth.
So, by virtue of timing and novelty and skilled satirical writing (though I didn’t enjoy the book, I did admire the writing), it became a classic often assigned in high school English classes. (But not at my high school, where the English teachers were WWII vets.) And the thought of teenagers reading the book bothers me, because the message – the absurdity of men, the randomness of chance, the hopelessness of life – is a disturbing one. It’s a book I’d want to know my kids were reading so we could discuss it together. Which makes me wonder. Did my kids read it in high school? Have they read it since? What did they think of it?
And how about you? Have you read Catch-22? What’s your take on it? What effect has it
