Catch 22 and freedom from opressive forces
...repression and authority, as it is unable to be controlled by eternal opponents. It allows for survival and liberation against oppressive structures. The opening also demonstrates a tradition of innocent homosexual relations as a rejection of the norms within American society. It’s a symbol of male freedom from the restrictions and conventions of civilization. The relationship between Yossarian and the chaplain runs deeply though the novel contributing a religious allusion to the theme of resistance. Yossarian assumes a Jesus like role bringing hope to the squadron members and resisting temptation. As Yossarian sits naked in the tree at Snowden’s funeral, we draw a connection between the tree of knowledge in the biblical epic of Adam and Eve. “It’s the tree of life…and of knowledge of good and evil too.’ Milo is seen as almost tempting Yossarian with his cotton candy, like the snake in the tree at Eden. This representation as a Christ like figure presents a moral resistance. Yossarian is surrounded by men with corrupt (or non existent) morals, yet he maintains his own doctrine and does not compromise these values at any stage during the novel. He confronts the inauthentic values inherent in the system with his own genuine morals and values. He seeks freedom from these distort values. As a Christ like figure Yossarian bring hope the men around him. Yossarian offers an alternative to simply complying with the ever rising compulsory combat missions; he offers the possibility to simply defy the establishment. ‘…the men were perfectly content to fly as many missions as we asked as long as they though they had no alternative. Now you’ve given them hope…’ In refusing to fly Yossarian is taking control of his own destiny and seeking freedom from the repressive military structure that aims to use him as a pawn in their quest for power. ‘If I were to give up my life now, it wouldn’t be for my country. It would be for Cathcart and Korn.’ Yossarian is not simply refusing to fly because he fears for his own life, but he sees the corruption inherent in the military system, he sees the repressive force it truly is and he resists, liberating himself. Refusing to wear his uniform is a further manifestation of Yossarian’s quest for freedom. He refuses to surrender himself to the establishment, he seeks to maintain his sense of individuality, and his nakedness is an open display of defiance to the authorities around him. It is an overt display of disrespect to authorities and symbolizes his refusal to submit to their control. The soldier in white is a reoccurring symbol within the novel. He is a soldier covered head to toe in white bandages and he arouses fear and disgust within many characters. He represents the absolute absence of meaning, the ‘dumb blankness’ of corporate army life. Don Anderson again guides us to his significance, as he draws referances to Moby Dick, where the white whale is ‘visible absence of colour’, a ‘dumb blankness full of meaning.’ The white soldier embodies this ‘dumb blankness’ the lack of meaning in the army, in corporate American life. Yossarian flee’s from this lack of meaning, in his quest for freedom he rejects the terms of life symbolized by the soldier in white; the corruption and moral breakdown, he pursued his truth and searches for his own meaning. The ultimate step in Yossarian’s quest for free...