Catch-22
No-win logical trap
Catch-22 is a 1961 satirical novel by Joseph Heller set during World War II, following a U.S.
Army Air Forces bombardier who tries to avoid flying more combat missions.
The book's title refers to a fictional military regulation embodying impossible, self-contradictory logic.
Have you read Catch-22?
The novel is considered a landmark of American literature for its absurdist portrayal of war and bureaucracy. (Lowercase catch-22 is the common noun for any no-win paradox.)
Mockery exposing vice
- World War IISecond global military conflict
- militaryArmed forces collectively
- novelNew and unusual
- absurdistBeliever in cosmic meaninglessness
dark comedy · anti-war · bombardier · Air Force · classic · American literature · absurdist fiction · Snowden
satire
Mockery exposing vice
- World War IISecond global military conflict
- militaryArmed forces collectively
- novelNew and unusual
absurdist · dark comedy · anti-war · bombardier · Air Force · classic · American literature · absurdist fiction · Snowden · mission
- Absurdist WorksWaiting for Godot, Rhinoceros, Happy Days, Sisyphean task, meaninglessness
- war humormilitary humor, MASH, Beetle Bailey, war comics, Hogan's Heroes
- 20th Century Books1984, Animal Farm, Brave New World, Grapes of Wrath, The Great Gatsby
- aviationaircraft, airports, flying, flight, airplane
- Classic BooksPride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, Moby Dick, Moby-Dick, Great Expectations
- classicsHomer, Iliad, the Iliad, Odyssey, the Odyssey
Catch-22win-win situation
Outcome benefiting all parties
win-win · way out · escape hatch · easy fix · clear path
Catch-22fair shake
Equitable treatment or opportunity
level playing field · even odds · win · lucky break · fluke
Catch-22free choice
Unrestricted decision-making power
empowerment · autonomy · wiggle room · flexibility · latitude