John Yossarian

The protagonist of the novel, Yossarian is a rational and realistic person, whose goal is simply to stay alive. However, this isn’t easy for him, because total strangers are trying to murder him whenever he flies his missions. In addition to that, there’s also Colonel Cathcart, who keeps raising the number of missions he has to fly whenever he comes close to finishing them. Yossarian does anything and everything he can to prevent himself from having to complete those missions. He plans on faking engine failure over the Italian Alps, and landing in a neutral country. He also fakes liver problems to be able to stay in the comfortable hospital, secluded from the dangers of war. The pain in his liver which he feigns dumbfounds the doctors, because it falls just short of jaundice, and yet it refuses to go away. Furthermore, Yossarian attempts to escape from the war by asking to be grounded by Doc Daneeka, the one person who can ground him. Unfortunately, Yossarian comes across a major problem there: Catch-22. Catch-22 states that anyone who is willing to risk their life by flying missions is obviously insane and unfit to fly. However, by asking to be grounded, they prove themselves to be sane, and therefore have to be kept on duty.

Yossarian’s outlook throughout the novel is expressed very well when it states, “Nobody had a right to take such frightful risks with his life.” (Chapter 30, pg 332) He felt that Colonel Cathcart didn’t have the right to increase the number of missions, therefore putting him in danger. Despite Yossarian’s goal of saving himself, however, he is not a selfish person. He turns down Colonel Korn and Colonel Cathcart’s deal at the end of the novel, because he doesn’t want to let down the rest of his squadron. This shows his selfless nature. Yossarian is also very brave, regardless of his fear of flying. When he refuses to complete any more missions, even Colonel Korn says, “You’re an intelligent person of great moral character who has taken a very courageous stand.” He is not afraid of confrontation with his superiors, and he will oppose them if he feels it is right or necessary. Finally, Yossarian is a very caring individual, because he grieves for the deaths of his friends. When he hears of Hungry Joe’s death, he even begins to cry, and hides his tears in the crook of his shoulder.

Colonel Cathcart

Has aspires to become a general, and therefore is always trying to make a good impression on his superiors. He does this by increasing the mandatory number of missions throughout the book and also volunteering his squadron for the hardest missions, in order to prove that he’s a good leader. He even goes as far as to carry around a cigarette holder wherever he goes, in a desperate attempt to improve his image. Colonel Cathcart is not a very bright person, and he often looks to Colonel Korn for reassurance. At one point, he “began banging on his buzzer with his fist for Colonel Korn to come running into his office and assure him that everybody loved him, that Yossarian was a figment of his imagination, and that he was making wonderful progress in the splendid and valiant campaign he was waging to become a general.” (Chapter 21, pg 215) Cathcart is a very selfish person, and he is willing to do anything to get himself into The Saturday Evening Post. He even decides to volunteer his group for the second mission to Avignon to help “speed things up.” (Chapter 25, pg 282) On that same page, he also states “The sooner we get some casualties, the sooner we can make some progress on this,” thus showing his heartless character.

Nately

A kind, caring, good-natured teenage boy, Nately comes from a rich family that dislikes “new money.” He falls in love with a prostitute in Rome, and finally wins over her heart by letting her get a full night’s sleep. The next morning, he spends his time dashing about the apartment, shushing everyone in sight. This shows his considerate feelings towards her. He respects her and scolds his friends for speaking of her in a derogatory manner. Also, while in the hospital after Yossarian punches him in the nose, Nately repeatedly apologizes to Yossarian. He had done nothing wrong, so there was no need to apologize, but doing so anyway shows his good nature.

Milo Minderbinder

Milo is greedy and is willing to kill his own men to earn money. He cares so much about his syndicate that he even attempts to feed his squadron chocolate-covered cotton, knowing that it would make them sick. To increase his prosperity and the success of his syndicate, he even signed a contract with Germany, saying that he would bomb his own squadron for money. Many deaths and injuries were caused by doing so, but all he could think about was the money, showing his selfishness. Another example confirming this trait is when he carries out an elaborate plan on gullible Colonel Cathcart. Falling for it, Cathcart gives him permission to not fly any more combat missions. Instead, other men, including Yossarian, will be forced to fly them for Milo, while he gets rewarded for their efforts. By carrying out that plan, Milo is endangering the lives of his friends, in order to protect his own, which is extremely selfish.

Chaplain Tappman

Very kind, forgiving, and sympathetic, Chaplain Tappman is afraid of confrontation and isn’t very brave. He is lonely and misses his family, and he cares very deeply about them. He always worries that some tragedy will occur, killing them. The chaplain also has very little self confidence and not many friends; however, he treasures the few he does have. Chaplain Tappman shows his compassion when he sees Captain Flume in the woods. Upon seeing him, “The chaplain was moved almost to tears by the harassed, bedraggled picture the captain presented, and he filled with deference and compassion at the thought of the many severe rigors the poor man had to endure daily.” (Chapter 25, pg 278) Throughout the novel, many of the horrible things involved with war test the chaplain’s faith, which grows steadily weaker. At the end of the novel, he once again rediscovers his faith in God when he realizes that Orr is still alive and well. Along with increased faith, Orr’s perseverence in paddling to Sweden gives him hope, and he says, “If Orr could row to Sweden, then I can triumph over Colonel Cathcart and Colonel Korn, if I persevere.” (Chapter 41, pg 451) Chaplain Tappman suddenly becomes very brave and confident, and he even feels up to punching Captain Black in the nose the very next time he sees him. The chaplain can be compared to the Cowardly Lion in the Wizard of Oz, who, after being very timid and shy, finally becomes courageous at the conclusion of the movie.

Chief White Halfoat

Of Native American ancestry, Chief white Halfoat often brings up how the White Man forced his family off their land. Any time they tried to settle down, they were moved away because oil was discovered there, which is why his family had lived in several different states. Halfoat is an alcoholic, and even tried to bring whiskey into the hospital by smuggling it inside empty shampoo bottles. He made up his mind early on that he would die of pneumonia, and stuck with that decision. He punches Colonel Moodus in the nose each time he saw him, and he also threatens to slit Captain Flume’s throat from ear to ear. Eventually, just as he predicted, Chief White Halfoat did die of pneumonia. In the novel, his character represents most Native Americans and their opinions of the “White Man.”

Orr

As Yossarian’s optimistic roommate, Orr is continually making improvements to their tent, such as putting in a concrete floor and the fixing the stove. He is “an eccentric midget, a freakish, likable dwarf with a smutty mind and a thousand valuable skills that would keep him in a low income group all his life.” (Chapter 28, pg 312) Yossarian also describes him as “a happy imbecile” and a “warm-hearted, simple-minded gnome.” (Chapter 28, pg 310) When asked why he doesn’t stop flying missions, Orr tells Yossarian that he doesn’t mind flying missions even though he gets shot down almost every time. Later on, Yossarian realizes that Orr was deliberately being shot down to gain experience at crash landing. He had planned all along on being shot down, and then rowing to neutral Sweden, that way he wouldn’t have to fight any longer. At the end of the novel, he carried through with this plan, and ended up alive and well in Sweden. Despite his simple-mindedness, Orr is also very intelligent, for he clearly understands the dangers of war, and he escapes to Sweden.

Captain “Aarfy” Aardvark

Aarfy is Yossarian’s flight navigator, and is useless at navigating. He also seems to have no sense for danger whatsoever. Whenever flak is shot at Yossarian’s plane and Yossarian is scared and frustrated out of his mind, Aarfy just stands there with a dumb smile on his fearless face, pretending he can’t hear Yossarian’s orders. Later on in the novel, Aarfy rapes Michaela, a maid, and throws her out the window, killing her. When Yossarian first tells him that he is in huge trouble and would be arrested, he says that he only raped her once. Yossarian shouts back, “But you killed her, Aarfy!” (Chapter 39, pg 418) “Oh, I had to do that after I raped her,” (Chapter 39, pg 418) Aarfy replies with a clear conscience, showing that he doesn’t care at all about the woman he had just killed. Soon, when the police was arriving, he began to show fear for the first time in the novel. Aarfy is also a “Climber,” as Nately’s parents would describe him. For example, throughout the novel, Aarfy tries to make friends with Nately, that way he could get a job from Nately’s wealthy father after the war.

Doc Daneeka

Doc Daneeka was an unsuccessful physician living on Staten Island before the war. When the war started, other doctors were drafted into the army, and his practice started booming because of it. Life was good, and he was happy. Suddenly, Doc Daneeka, himself, was drafted into the army, making him unable to enjoy his new-found success. Because of this, whenever somebody else complains about their problems, Doc Daneeka always says “You think you’ve got it bad?”, and then goes on to tell them about his problems. He has a very big sense of self pity, and he is very often uncaring and unimpressed when it comes to other people’s problems. Doc Daneeka is also the person who first introduces Yossarian to Catch-22. Finally, because Doc Daneeka’s name is on the flight roster for McWatt’s plane, he is pronounced dead when the plane crashes into a mountain. People instantly begin to ignore him and act as though he’s dead, even though he is obviously still living. Even Sergeant Knight insists that Doc Daneeka is dead, despite the fact that the two of them are standing side by side. This ridiculousness is symbolic of the insanity and inefficiency of bureaucracy.

Hungry Joe

Obsessed with taking pictures naked girls, Hungry Joe used to be a photographer for Life Magazine before the war started. Since then, he has just been using that past occupation as an excuse to get girls naked and photograph them, although the pictures never come out anyway. Hungry Joe is also very short tempered, angering extremely easily. Everything from Aarfy smacking his lips while puffing on a pipe to McWatt snapping his cards while playing blackjack aggravates him. Additionally, whenever Hungry Joe doesn’t have to fly more missions, he has nightmares as he sleeps, yelling at the top of his voice, while Huple’s cat sleeps on his face. Eventually, the cat suffocates him to death while he sleeps, for he doesn’t wake up before he runs out of air. Finally, as Colonal Cathcart raises the mandatory number of missions, Hungry Joe is also a victim, just like Yossarian. Every time he finishes the missions and packs his bagsto go home, the number of missions is raised again. He is then forced to unpack everything and risk his life flying more missions.