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War and Bureaucracy
Themes and Colors
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Catch-22, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The novel opens with Yossarian censoring letters—blocking out important military information—while lying in the hospital. He begins signing his name as Washington Irving or Irving Washington. This introduces a theme of communication, and garbled communication, that runs throughout the text. Appleby, a soldier and superlative Ping-Pong player, is told by Orr that he has flies in his eyes, but hears that he has “sties in his eyes.” Aarfy claims not to be able to hear Yossarian when they’re flying, even though Yossarian makes plain, via body language, what he desires (usually, to get out of the plane’s crawl-space). Orr consistently leads Yossarian in linguistic circles when the two are tent-mates. The chaplain is never able to communicate with his fellow officers, many of whom, like Whitcomb and Cathcart, believe he is strange and militarily unnecessary. Whitcomb desires that form-letters be sent by the chaplain to families of bereaved soldiers, but when these letters are sent, they are so general as to seem mocking and absurd—they indicate no personal knowledge of the soldier at all. And a good deal of the novel takes place during the soldiers’ “rest leave” in Rome, where they must communicate with Italians in a hodge-podge of English and other languages, often with comedic effect.
While funny, the outcomes of these miscommunications are occasionally quite serious. Because Yossarian has signed one of his censored letters with the chaplain’s name, the chaplain is nearly tortured and imprisoned by military police. Yossarian seems never to escape from this web of miscommunication, but his decision to flee to Sweden at the end of the novel indicates a willingness to sever all communicative ties with the Army and with his native country.
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Communication and Miscommunication ThemeTracker
The ThemeTracker below shows where, and to what degree, the theme of Communication and Miscommunication appears in each chapter of Catch-22. Click or tap on any chapter to read its Summary & Analysis.
How often theme appears:
chapter length:
Chapter
Chapter 1
1
Chapter 2
2
Chapter 3
3
Chapter 4
4
Chapter 5
5
Chapter 6
6
Chapter 7
7
Chapter 8
8
Chapter 9
9
Chapter 10
10
Chapter 11
11
Chapter 12
12
Chapter 13
13
Chapter 14
14
Chapter 15
15
Chapter 16
16
Chapter 17
17
Chapter 18
18
Chapter 19
19
Chapter 20
20
Chapter 21
21
Chapter 22
22
Chapter 23
23
Chapter 24
24
Chapter 25
25
Chapter 26
26
Chapter 27
27
Chapter 28
28
Chapter 29
29
Chapter 30
30
Chapter 31
31.
Chapter 32
32
Chapter 33
33
Chapter 34
34
Chapter 35
35
Chapter 36
36
Chapter 37
37
Chapter 38
38
Chapter 39
39
Chapter 40
40
Chapter 41
41
Chapter 42
42
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Communication and Miscommunication Quotes in Catch-22
Below you will find the important quotes in Catch-22 related to the theme of Communication and Miscommunication.
Chapter 2 Quotes
As far back as Yossarian could recall, he explained to Clevinger with a patient smile, somebody was always hatching a plot to kill him.
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Yossarian's argument here is both simple and mind-bending. Because he is in war, he states, there are people on the other side of the battle who want to kill him. He does not want to be around those people - he wants, instead, to survive. So he does everything he can to avoid battle, knowing that, outside, there are people trying to kill him.When fellow soldiers say that Yossarian is behaving irrationally, he argues that they, the other soldiers, are the ones refusing to acknowledge the truth - that enemy soldiers would kill them, too, if they had the chance, Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo mi
Chapter 3 Quotes
Do you remember . . . that time in Rome when that girl who can’t stand you kept hitting me over the head with the heel of her shoe? Do you want to know why she was hitting me?
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Orr is a foil to Yossarian's protestations of sane insanity - as Yossarian has a difficult time understanding the logic linking Orr's thoughts, one to another. When Orr offers to tell Yossarian why a prostitute was hitting him over the head, he never follows through, and Yossarian doesn't ask - it is a broken-off point in the narrative, one that will recur and lightly preoccupy Yossarian.In this way, Orr's seemingly non-rational speech connects to the larger lack of explanatory value in anything the airmen do - at least, in Yossarian's view. Thus the war itself continues, and people die, even Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore.
Chapter 5 Quotes
Sure there’s a catch . . . Catch-22. Anyone who wants to get out of combat duty isn’t really crazy.
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This is perhaps the most famous, and deadly earnest, joke in the novel. Doc Daneeka tells Yossarian that he, Doc, can only keep Yossarian from flying if Yossarian is proved to be insane. But asking not to fly is proof of sanity, because anyone would have to be crazy to volunteer to fly missions over Italy - since the chance of dying is so high. Thus, in trying to escape war, Yossarian behaves rationally and is forced to continue fighting in the war. If Yossarian were to volunteer, then his behavior would be irrational, and would qualify him, in Doc's Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. R
Chapter 10 Quotes
Ex-PFC Wintergreen accepted the role of digging and filling up holes with all the uncomplaining dedication of a true patriot.
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Wintergreen is a private, and continues to be a private, because he shirks his duty and, more often than not, deserts. When he does this, he is forced to dig holes - he is given a new duty. And this duty, of shirking his duty and being punished for it, he considers to be his real duty. Thus, in doing his duty Wintergreen is not doing his duty, and in not doing his duty, he would, of course, be doing it - by being a solider on the front lines. Wintergreen notes that this is a Catch-22, and Yossarian, too, Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati
Chapter 11 Quotes
“What makes you so sure Major Major is a Communist?”
“You never heard him denying it until we began accusing him, did you? And you don’t see him signing any of our loyalty oaths.”
“You aren’t letting him sign any.”
“Of course not . . . that would defeat the whole purpose of our crusade.”
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Captain Black does what he can to get Major Major in trouble, in part because he resents Major's swift (and to his mind, undeserved) rise through the ranks. The loyalty oath is a fine example of this, and an instance not just of the Catch-22 but of the "logic" of the witch hunt, something that would come to dominate post-war American political life. In a witch hunt, any protestation of innocence on the part of an accused party is viewed as a signal of guilt. At the same time an acceptance of guilt would, of course, be understood on its Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde
Chapter 16 Quotes
You will . . . you’ll tear it up into little pieces the minute I’m gone and go waling away like a big shot . . . because . . .Luciana let you sleep with her and did not ask you for money.
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This is an extension of the concept of the "Catch-22" to romantic love. Initially, Yossarian believes he is only looking for a woman to spend one night with - and when he meets Luciana, he expects just that. He buys her dinner and they do not have sex - but they do the next day, and Yossarian finds he has feelings for her. But Luciana will not admit that she has feelings for Yossarian, because, as she puts it, "only a crazy man" would desire a woman who is not a virgin, and she cannot marry a crazy man. Yossarian Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque err
Chapter 19 Quotes
Colonel Cathcart was a slick, successful, slipshod, unhappy man of thirty-six who lumbered when he walked and wanted to be a general. He was dashing and dejected, poised and chagrined.
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Cathcart, whose name has an anagram of "Catch" within it, is the foil of Major Major, the character who cannot help being promoted above the level of his ability. Cathcart, on the other hand, believes he has what it takes to be a general, and he sets his sights on that position, doing everything he can to curry favor with superiors in order to move up the ranks. But the narrator notes that this form of ambition is not necessarily the most successful in wartime, or in the American military. A good deal of advancement seems to be derived from Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asp
Chapter 20 Quotes
What displeased Corporal Whitcomb most about the chaplain, apart from the fact that the chaplain believed in God, was his lack of initiative and aggressiveness.
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Whitcomb does not believe in God and finds the chaplain to be a "weak" man, unsuited to a position of command. Others in the unit make fun of the chaplain for being a man of God, or for being "only" Anabaptist and not a Catholic priest - as though there were a hierarchy of religious denominations like ranks in the Army. The chaplain, for his part, wants to continue mildly on his way, and though he is frustrated by his maltreatment, he feels there is very little he can do about it.Whitcomb's attitude - that he might "take over" the Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commo
Chapter 24 Quotes
But the Germans are also members in good standing of the syndicate, and it’s my job to protect their rights as shareholders. . . . Don’t you understand that I have to respect the sanctity of my contract with Germany?
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Milo here argues for yet another kind of paradox. Because he has an import-export business, he feels it is his contractual obligation to protect his merchandise at all costs. Sometimes this means doing business with the Germans, which Yossarian finds, at best, to be politically suspect. Sometimes this means actively sidingwith the Germans, to make sure that Americans do not blockade the delivery of his goods.When Yossarian argues that the latter activity is most definitely an act of treason, Milo counters that it is simply a defense of his contract. And contracts, Milo insists, are an American tradition, unbreakable in Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatib
Chapter 27 Quotes
“You have a morbid aversion to dying. You probably resent the fact that you’re at war and might get your head blown off any second.”
“I more than resent it, sir. I’m absolutely incensed.”
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Sanderson believes that Yossarian is insane, and indeed, he wantsYossarian to be insane, as it makes his job as therapist more interesting. Sanderson complains that in his position he is often lonely, that no one in the group cares for him, and that the only excitement he has comes in the form of second-hand sex dreams, told to him by his patients.Yossarian insists that, yes, he does have a fear of death, and that he doesn't want to put himself in a position where he might die or be injured. Sanderson considers this to be a signal indicator of insanity, Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nost
Chapter 31 Quotes
The War Department replied touchingly that there had been no error and that she [Mrs. Daneeka] was undoubtedly the victim of some sadistic and psychotic forger in her husband’s squadron. The letter to husband was returned unopened, stamped KILLED IN ACTION.
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Because Daneeka is afraid of flying, he asks to be placed on the flight logs of various planes, so he can "serve" his necessary hours in the air. McWatt agreed, on the day of the tragic accident, to "have" Daneeka on the logs. The rest of the airmen jumped out, but of course Daneeka did not, because he was not on the plane to begin with. But because Daneeka was not found with the other crewmen in the water, the War Department falsely believed that he died in the crash along with McWatt.Mrs. Daneeka and the other soldiers then have Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore
Chapter 33 Quotes
It just isn’t right for a nice girl like you to go looking for other men to sleep with. I’ll give you all the money you need, so you won’t have to do it any more.
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Nately does what officers are told not to do when on leave - he falls in love with a woman in Rome, a prostitute. She wants only to go to sleep, but finds that she cannot - because too many other officers seek her attentions. When finally she does sleep, she is refreshed, and she agrees to "date" Nately.But Nately finds that her habits die hard. In particular, she does not wish to wear clothes, because she is accustomed to sitting around apartments semi-nude, waiting for clients. She does not understand why this behavior hurts Nately, and Nately, try though Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam off
Chapter 34 Quotes
“They’re going to disappear him.”
“They’re what? What does that mean?”
“I don’t know. I heard them talking behind a door.”
. . .
“It doesn’t make sense. it isn’t even good grammar. What the hell does it mean when they disappear someone?”
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Dunbar, in the eyes of the unit's officers, has been breaking far too many rules - far more than his fellow soldiers, who, the narrative has thus far demonstrated, have no trouble breaking lots of rules. When Nurses Duckett and Cramer state that Dunbar will be "disappeared," however, Yossarian's first response is a grammatical one - he doesn't consider "disappear" to be a transitive verb, something that can be done to someone. He is confused by their logic.But just as the Army can argue that living people are "officially" dead, or that "sane" soldiers must continue to fly insanely dangerous Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Und
Chapter 35 Quotes
No, sir . . . it’s generally known that you’ve flown only two missions. And that one of those occurred when Aarfy accidentally flew you over enemy territory while navigating you to Naples for a black-market water cooler.
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Milo makes fun of Cathcart, who, though he dispatches men into harm's way, does not fly missions himself, out of a fear of being shot down. Milo too wants to get out of flying missions, in part out of rational avoidance of danger, but in part to run his business, which he finds to be extremely profitable, especially as Germany becomes weakened and more in need of the goods Milo supplies.Milo has learned a great deal of trickery over the course of the war, and in this instance he tricks Cathcart, who, like Milo, wants a slice of the M Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium r
Chapter 37 Quotes
Do you know what he wants? He wants us to march. He wants everyone to march!
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This passage comes from one of the more ridiculous characters in a novel full of them. Scheisskopf loves one thing and one thing only, as a military man: parades. He believes that parades are the heart and soul of the military enterprise, and he schedules them with great gusto whenever he can. All the other soldiers are horrified at these parades, because parades mean marching, and marching means physical exertion, especially for the men who are accustomed to sitting at their desks all day, sending other men to fight the war and put their lives in danger.Heller here satirizes the Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. C
Chapter 39 Quotes
Catch-22 . . . . Catch-22. Catch-22 says they have a right to do anything we can’t stop them from doing.
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This is one of the more chilling passages in the novel. Yossarian has gone AWOL, absent without leave, and he lands in Rome to discover that the city is mostly destroyed (even though Rome was an "open city" during the war, and was largely protected from Allied bombardment). The old woman Yossarian meets claims that the destruction of Rome, and indeed the effort of the entire war, is a Catch-22 - but Yossarian does not understand how she could have known this term, which is particular to his unit. She says she learned it from American GIs who were in Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi nec
Chapter 41 Quotes
Man was matter, that was Snowden’s secret. . . . The spirit gone, man is garbage. That was Snowden’s secret.
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Perhaps the most affecting passage in the novel. Yossarian is overcome with guilt at the thought that he was in some way responsible for Snowden's death, as he was in the plane with Snowden, and feels he did not do enough to deflect the plane away from enemy fire. At first, Yossarian believed that Snowden was only hit in the leg, but then he sees that under his flak vest Snowden has been mortally wounded. Taking off the vest, Yossarian sees Snowden "pour out" of his own body, a bloody mess.Yossarian realizes, horrifically, that man is just a bundle of Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesc
Chapter 42 Quotes
Goodbye, Yossarian . . . and good luck. I’ll stay here and persevere, and we’ll meet again when the fighting stops.
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Yossarian has throughout the novel been hemmed in by a series of Catch-22s, by the contradictions that keep him trapped in the Army and forced to fly missions until, he believes, he will be killed - at which point, perhaps, the Army might find it is time to discharge him, only to realize that he is already gone. Yossarian vows not to let that happen. He notes that he does have an option other than trying to become, or pretend to be, insane - he can simply desert. Desertion, for Yossarian, is a way of "dropping out" of the bind Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis cons
