There's something deeply ominous about the initial scenes of the Hollywood adaptation of Joseph Heller's novel Catch 22. Every scene is a comical escapade, yet every scene concludes with depressingly meaningless death that is totally captivating. Clearly, this is the true meaning of World War II for many American soldiers. The trench-deep sarcasm continually gives the impression that the politics of war trump any concern for human life. "That's the kind of humor in the face of adversity that keeps America strong." In many ways, irony is the only means to deal with a war that has no meaning.
Especially for bomber crews, the war seemed particularly mundane to the point of insanity. Yossarian - the main character - cannot successfully escape combat. He pleads insanity to the doctor to find that one may only be found insane he continues to fly. The meaningless craze of this catch 22 was no doubt experienced by Howard Zinn. For Zinn, his memory of bombing the small French town of Royan had no strategic importance. The connection between Zinn's anti-war propagations and Keller's parody of Catch 22 is unmissible. The big picture is that war has no human value from the aerial view.
Especially for bomber crews, the war seemed particularly mundane to the point of insanity. Yossarian - the main character - cannot successfully escape combat. He pleads insanity to the doctor to find that one may only be found insane he continues to fly. The meaningless craze of this catch 22 was no doubt experienced by Howard Zinn. For Zinn, his memory of bombing the small French town of Royan had no strategic importance. The connection between Zinn's anti-war propagations and Keller's parody of Catch 22 is unmissible. The big picture is that war has no human value from the aerial view.
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