Book Lovers Series

Book Lovers: Episode 49

Episode 49: Catch-22

September 22, 2023


Here in 2023, everyone knows the general meaning of a catch-22. It’s a situation where you can’t win no matter what you do. You’re trapped, you’re stuck, and there’s no other option. But in 1961, when Joseph Heller’s seminal novel Catch-22 was published, there was no phrase for what it meant to be that kind of trapped. Thankfully for us all, Doc Daneeka, the endlessly bummed medical professional of the Air Force Corps on Pianosa, breaks the catch-22 down for Captain Yossarian, an Air Force bombardier trapped in a tremendous amount of bureaucratic red tape while everyone around him succumbs to the horrors of war.

 

Heller’s novel goes on to describe the absurdities of war, from officers who attempt to one-up each other to the ironies of ailments that put soldiers in the hospital. As Yossarian stumbles his way through scenario after scenario, and tries to do the right thing for himself, he’s reminded over and over that even if he gets out, he’s never REALLY out. In this episode, we’re discussing capitalism, the systems novel, and the fungibility of humans. And, of course, Major Major Major Major.




Titles and topics discussed:

  • Catch-22 by Peter Heller
  • The systems novel, a literary genre outlined by Tom LeClair in his book In the Loop: Don Delillo and the Systems Novel
  • White Noise by Don Delillo
  • Underworld by Don Delillo
  • William Gaddis
  • Thomas Pynchon
  • Always Coming Home by Ursula K. Le Guin
  • Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon
  • Fallout 4, released by Bethesda Games
  • The Pale King by David Foster Wallace

 

 

Titles from the RA Corner:

  • Old Joy, directed by Kelly Reichardt
  • Libra by Don Delillo
  • The Monty Python catalog
  • Jojo Rabbit, directed by Taika Waititi
  • The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien
  • The Trees by Percival Everett

 

 

What we’re reading and watching:

  • Rea: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt and Whalefall by Daniel Kraus
  • Joseph: The Bee Sting by Paul Murray, the TV show Reservation Dogs, and the TV show Justified
  • Jess: Kissing Kosher by Jean Meltzer and The 39 Steps, directed by Alfred Hitchcock