荒原上的英雄

【Abstract】Catch-22 is one of the representative works of American “Black Humor” written by Joseph Heller. The leading character Yossarian is normally looked on as a “coward” and an “anti-heroic figure”. However the paper is intended to demonstrate that Yossarian， if viewed in a different way by taking account of the novel background with in-depth cases analysis， can be seen as a “hero on the wasteland”.

【Key words】Catch-22； Joseph Heller； a hero on the wasteland

I. Introduction

Catch-22 is one of the representative works of American “ Black Humor” and the first novel written by Joseph Heller （1923-1999）. This novel has ever been regarded American best novel， which reflects the Second World War. In fact， the meaning of this novel has gone far beyond the category of the war， even expanding to the whole human existing situation as well as the whole American society. The author， by adopting an air force base on a small island off Italy as the stage and the end of the Second World War as the background， describes a large group of different absurd and abnormal characters with the technique of Black Humor. The Protagonist， Captain Yossarian， is the center of consciousness in this story， and is also one of the characters best presented. In most existing comments， Yossarian is normally looked on as a “coward” and an “anti-heroic figure”. These comments are partially true at first sight， however， if viewed from another perspective with a careful research on the details and background of this novel， it should be pointed out that Yassarian is a “hero on the wasteland” rather than a “coward” depicted in the conventional sense.

II. The Review of the Novel

This novel depicts the No. 27 American bomber group stationed on a small island off Italy to resist the invasion of the Nazi Germany during the Second World War. In this small world， all is crazy， irrational and despairing. Absurd things happen one after another on this stage： Colonel Cathcart's constant increase of the number of missions； the person still alive is declared dead whereas the dead is still alive on the official list； the person never poses questions is allowed to ask at the meeting； one major only permits his inferior to see him in his office while himself is not in. In order to escape from this irrational and crazy world， Yossarian， as a bombardier， spares no efforts to save his life from danger. But every attempt only results in being controlled more tightly——due to the confusing military term ： Catch-22， which regulates that anyone who is crazy， should get out of combat but he should ask for permission by himself； if he asks， he would be no longer crazy and would have to fly more missions ——because a concern for ones own life proves his sane. The catch is used by the superior powers to uphold and increase their power， and yet it is harmful to those who do not have power in the first place. Colonel Korn and Colonel Cathcart， regardless of the soldiers life， crazily increase the flying mission numbers to advance their own careers and personal gains. In order to avoid misfortune， Captain Yossarian seeks to protect his own life by fleeing to the hospital， since catch-22 prevents him from either being grounded for illness or obtaining a leave， and finally he has no other choice but flee to Sweden for a new life.

III. The Social Background

This novel tries to reveal not only the autarchy and corruption of the American army but also the various absurd phenomena in modern American society through the description of the absurd and irrational relationship between the officers and soldiers in the air force group. At the end of the World War II， many persons strived openly and secretly for their own interests and favorable positions， many conflicts emerging. After the war， Korea War and Vietnam War happening one after another intensified the conflicts existing in American society， lashing American traditional value and cultural system. With the rapid development of the capitalist industry， the world was found not only irrational and disorderly， but also ridiculous and absurd. People feel disappointed and incapable with the social reality. The fantasy of the ideal， the loss of the faith and the confusion of the morality are the typical characteristics of this American generation in which Yossarian is one.

IV. The Image of Yossarian

1. A Man of the Age

Specific age makes specific hero. Every age has its own hero. Yossarian might not completely accord with the conventional heroic figures， not amounting to the incarnation of the justice， the herald of the peace and the warrior of fearless brave. But what he has done， in such an absurd world and on such a spiritual wasteland， shows his kindness， bravery， intelligence， compassion and insight in comparison with the inhumane dominators and ignorant soldiers. He is eager for life， never abandoning the hope of living on； He can resist the temptation of material interests， refusing to cooperate with the dominators； He is a man of integrity， able to see the essence of the war. Among this group of mad persons， he can really be thought as “the only level-headed among the heavily drunk group”.

2. A Man of Dignity

Certainly， Yossarian is afraid of death， afraid of being dead unknown， being dead valueless and meaningless for those persons such as colonel cathcart. He often thinks of those comrades who waste their life meaninglessly， such as Clevinger， Mudd， Nately， the soldier in white， etc. What leaves Yossarian a deep and striking impression is the death of Snowden. Finding Snowden with a thigh wound and the tail gunner in a faint， Yossarian had almost panicked. All snowdens internal organs slid out onto the floor from a major chest wound. After vomiting， Yossarian looked back at the young man and experienced a profound realization of the nature of mortality： Human beings are materialized and life is very fragile. Nevertheless， the cruelty of the war doesnt make Yossarian irrational or self-abandoning. He still holds on with boiled blood， fighting for the dignity of life.

3. A Man of Intelligence

Yossarian is a man of intelligence and strong will power， unwilling to be controlled by destiny. He has enough courage to do some earth-shaking business. However， he is very prudent and rational. He clearly realizes： in the world dominated by Catch-22， any radical resistance is undoubtedly in vain just as using an egg to hit the stone. Instead， Yossarian often plays some jokes with the dominators by using his intelligence and strategic plans， such as fleeing to the ward， taking evasive action during his flights， secretly moving the bombing route on the map， putting soap into the soldiers food to delay campaign， etc. All of these leave the dominators quite annoyed.

4. A Man of Compassion

Yossarian is also a kind man with strong compassion. He never looks down upon those inferior to him. For instance， he makes proposal to a whore named Luciana. When he sees a long scar on Lucianas back， he feels himself almost broken-hearted， falling in love with her instantly. When he finds another flyer kills a maid after raping her， he reproaches him for his cruelty. In Yossarians eye， whores are also human beings and should be treated equally. But to his disappointment， the police doesnt arrest the flyer that kills the maid， but arrest Yossarian for his stay in Rome without a pass card. Yossarian also helps Natelys whore to find her sister. In that inhumane war period， most people become indifferent and sackless. Its extremely praiseful that Yossarian still keeps warm-hearted and compassionate.

5. A Man of Conscience

Yossarian is a man of conscience who is not greedy for money and fame. Even the skeptical Milo Minderbinder trusts him， willing to tell Yossarian his secret of speculative business. Milo thinks Yosarian would be an honest and trustworthy partner. Of course， Yossarian would never help Milo do harm to others. He has ever had noble ideals with great zeal； however， it is the cruel social reality that changes him， compelling him into a situation in which he only strives for life. The dominators try to make a deal with him that will allow him to no longer fly any missions but be ethically repulsive to him. They promise to send him home as long as he likes them. If he does not give in， he will be court-martialed for being involved in black market practices. Yossarian protests against such wrongful accusations， deciding to escape rather than cooperate with the Cart carts. Moreover， Thus we can see Yossarian is a man of conscience. He rejects such a kind of dirty deal， retaining his dignity as a man.

V. Conclusion

All these absurdity， indifference and cruelty are perceived and borne in mind by Yossarian. Although he is courageous， intelligent and righteous， he cannot overcome that dominating “catch-22” which can be interpreted freely. This regulation， as a matter of fact， is a trap that men can never escape from. The world around him is of injustice and inhumanity. Any radical rebellion will be doomed. Confronted by a group of crazy persons， even a hero fails to put his ability into good use. It is true that what Yossarian has done is dwarfed by those great and glorious heroic figures depicted in the conventional sense. However， on this spiritual wasteland， he still keeps his rationality， his lust for life， his pursuit of love and his sense of compassion. He deals with the dominators strategically， and eventually launches a silent rebellion against the existing system by escaping， leaving to seek a new life in Sweden. Hence he can be viewed as “a hero on the wasteland”.

References：

[1]Heller，Joseph.Catch-22[M].New York：Simon&Schuster， Inc，1955.

[2]Bailey，Nicholas· Catch-22：[notes]/ notes by Nicholas Bailey[M].London：Longman York Press，1987.

[3]李宜燮，常耀信.美國文学选读[M].天津：南开出版社，1991.

[4]钱满素.美国当代小说家论[M].北京：中国社会科学出版社， 1987.

[5]成梅.《第二十二条军规》之续集《终了时刻》综论[J].四川外国语学院学报，2002.3.

作者简介：饶莉，女，讲师，南京大学外国语学院在读博士，南京航空航天大学金城学院英语教师，研究方向为文学理论暨翻译学研究。