Why Are Women Seen As Low?

While reading Catch-22 I have realized that women are portrayed very baldy. Why is that? Why are women seen as low in the novel? They are constantly seen like this in old novels, but it shows even more in this novel.  The women in the soldiers' lives are either prostitutes or nurses.  This is definitely not something good.  Could this image be portrayed in these novels because women had no rights during this time? Were these authors against women gaining their independence? These are questions that only the author will be able to answer directly.  I do not believe that it is something that will be found in the novel, but there is always a possibility.  This is a question that has been constantly raised while reading and in the reading groups we have in class.  The answer so far has been unknown, but I believe that it is important since the ideas in novels are affected by the situations or environments in which they are written.

Catch-22 and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest: Society Sees What We Choose To Show

Outward conformity and inward questioning is seen in many novels through the main protagonist.  Yossarian's personality is very similar to Chief Bromden's in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. They both are seen one way by the outside world, yet feel very different on the inside.  They show what the people want to see and then question themselves about it. They know what they want but the judgement of their own society is holding them back from achieving it.

All Yossarian wants to do is get back home alive.  He is doing everything possible to leave the war early or stay grounded for as long as he can.  On this journey, he finds himself with an internal conflict. He is not sure whether he is crazy or not.  He told the doctor he was crazy in order to stay grounded and the doctor told him he already knew he was crazy.  He said that because he realized he was crazy, he was no longer crazy.  Many times through out the novel the reader will find Yossarian asking himself the types of questions that focus on craziness.  To society, he is seen as a crazy man who does what he wants.  Everyone knows how deceitful and cunning he is.  People say he is crazy because he will go to any length just to get home alive.  No one is aware of what he is going through since he puts on a show in order to satisfy the thoughts people have of him.  He will verbally attack anyone who crosses him and acts the way the other soldiers do.

Chief Bromden is very similar to Yossarian since he does the same thing.  He wants to escape the mental ward he is captured in, but he isn't exactly sure how to do it.  This is until McMurphy arrives and gives him an idea of how to escape the ward.  From then on he begins to confide in McMurphy and begins to believe in himself.  Although he is very intelligent, the rest of the ward sees him as a retarded indian who is mute and deaf.  He continues to play that role since it hides his true side.  It gives him the advantage of being seen another way, a way in which he wants people to see him. It benefits him since it allows him to carry out his plan and escape the ward successfully.

Both of these characters have to different lives but act in the same way.  They hide who they really are along with all of the internal conflicts they face.  They act in a specific way so that society will see them the way they think they should be seen.  They try to satisfy their environments while trying to achieve their desires.  I'm not sure if this is seen as something correct or something negative.  Sometimes acting in a certain way allows us to gain what we need.  The form in which society sees us does not affect who we really are since society sees what we choose to show them.

Lord, I Turn To You When I Find It Convenient

Religion and faith, the two things that can make a person better or destroy a whole empire.  Regardless if a person is Catholic, Jewish, or Buddhist, they believe in a God.  They are taught right from wrong and are told to practice their beliefs. Most importantly, they are taught to constantly worship their God and pray to him daily.  Many people forget to do so and only think and pray to their God when they need his help.  They turn to him when it is convenient for them.  This is one of the biggest sins committed today in most religions.

This sin is seen in Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. Most of the characters commit this sin by killing their enemies.  All of the characters are pilots who have to fly a specific amount of missions in order to be able to go home.  During these missions they must bomb their enemies without hesitating, which is considered a sin.  Another sin they commit is sleeping with prostitutes while their loved ones are at home.  A big sin is committing adultery especially in the Jewish, Catholic, and Christian religion.  All of the characters are aware of their sins since they always tell the Chaplain that they do not want him near them.  The chaplain is the one who represents God in the war.  Ironically, they pray to the lord every time they are about to fly into the air.  They beg him to spare their lives on that mission.

Although I have never fought in a war, I have turned away from God unless it was convenient for me.  It is something I still do today, but I am trying to change that.  I do not pray to God every day, and I go to mass every Sunday because my mother forces me to go. The last time I actually prayed to the Lord was when a friend of mine was about to die and then died of cancer a week later.  It was sad and I didn't stop praying for his arrival into heaven.  Once I got over the stage of grief, I stopped.  It didn't interest me to pray and I stopped wanting to go to mass on Sundays.  I am one of many who can say honestly, "Lord, I turn to you when I find it convenient."  This is exactly what happens in my life, in the novel, and in the life of others.