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.