The author and his times
Catch-22 is a satirical novel by American author Joseph Heller. He began writing it in 1953; the novel was first published in 1961. Born on May 1, 1923 in Brooklyn, New York, he joined the Us ARmy Air Corps at age 19 in 1942. He was sent to the Italian Front two years later, THere he flew 60 combat missions as a B-25 bombardier. Heller thought of the idea for Catch-22 while sitting at home in 1953 thinking of the lines “It was love at first sight. The first time he saw the chaplain, He fell madly in love with him.” From that line he began to envision the story and later published Catch-22 in 1961.
Plot
During the second half of World War II, A soldier named Yossarian is stationed with his squadron on the island of Pianosa, near the Italian coast. Yossarian and his friends endure a nightmarish, absurd existence defined by bureaucracy and violence. The squadron is thrown thoughtlessly into brutal combat situations and bombing runs in which it is more important for the squadron members to capture good aerial photographs of explosions than the destroy their targets. Their colonels are continually raising the number of missions that they are required to fly before
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Catch-22 does not unfold in any chronological order, rather it relies on flashbacks and foreshadowing to introduce the plot. The novel opens in the middle of the timeline after all important missions have been flown : Ferrara, Orvieto, Bologna, and Avignon. It becomes even more confusing as the novel progresses because not only are important event told through flashbacks, but also through oblique references, and passing remarks in dialogue. The death of Snowden is rendered in all of these ways, first as the subject of casual comments, then as the occasion for a brief inconclusive flashback, and finally as a powerful dramatic