Catch-22 has been referred to both as comic and tragic satire. Yossarian, the main character, and other characters surrounding him only care about staying alive and finishing all their missions so they can be sent home. The generals only care about controlling the troops and getting promoted, making it seem that no one really cares about the political implications of the war. Little by little, Yossarian goes through the deaths of his friends leaving him as one of the only ones who remains alive. In the beginning of Catch-22, the novel seems very comic but towards the middle the horrors of war begin.
Catch-22 was referred to as a comic satire because of the way Joseph Heller uses irony and exaggeration making the reader thinks it’s funny. Doc Daneeka’s death is a serious and tragic event, but at the same time Joseph Heller makes it seem humorous. While Doc Daneeka is alive, Mrs. Daneeka is assured that her husband has died. She receives lots of money from the life insurance because of the death of her husband. Men flirt with her, trying to get a hold of the money she has received. All of a sudden she packs up her kids and heads for Michigan leaving no information behind. “ The husbands of her closest friends began to flirt with her. Mrs. Daneeka was simply delighted with the way things were turning out and had her hair dyed. Her fantastic wealth just kept piling up, and she had to remind herself daily that all the hundreds of dollars she was acquiring were not worth a penny without her husband to share this good fortune with her”. Once Doc Daneeka is said to be dead, Mrs. Daneeka has the time of her life, and does not respond to the letters Doc Daneeka sent her. While Mrs. Daneeka is spending all the money by herself, Doc Daneeka is in Pianosa where he doesn’t even exist because in paper it is said that he is dead.
In Catch-22, tragic satire is shown throughout the novel. Because of Mcwatt’s daredevil stunts and joking around, Kid Sampson ends up sliced in...