This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Vicki Rosenzweig (talk | contribs) at 09:15, 8 June 2002 (attempt to explain common meaning of this term; someone please check.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 09:15, 8 June 2002 by Vicki Rosenzweig (talk | contribs) (attempt to explain common meaning of this term; someone please check.)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Catch-22 is a novel by Joseph Heller about the madness of war. Specifically, it follows a number of American soldiers during World War II.
Within the book, catch-22 is the circular logic that prevents anyone from being invalided out of the military on the grounds of insanity: asking to be excused from flying bombing missions on the grounds of insanity is treated as proof of sanity. The phrase has become common to refer to any similar self-referential policy.