What is the origin of 'catch 22'?

Question

You hear the expression 'catch 22 situation' meaning there is no favourable way out, but what is it's origin?

Answer 1

Joseph Heller was a great writer of WWII stories, but the actual phrase "Catch 22" is an old 8th Air Force term from when they were bombing england....

Bomber Crews didn't know which plane they were going to be flying until they actually got on the tarmac...Yea..it might be they're original plane, or it might be a replacement. The gunners on those bombers took to carrying the firing pins for the 50 cals with them because it was the one item most often overelooked when getting a B-17 ready, and nothing sucks worse than doing a weapons check over the channel and finding out that none of Your guns have firing pins! Of course if You didn't have them you still continued with the mission, but your chances of being shot down increased exponentially. The number of 50 Cal firing pins in a standard B-17? 22. So Gunners used to ask each other if they'd catched 22. If they did..great..fly the mission. If not...great..still fly the mission.

Hope this clears up the "original" origins.

Answer 2

If you're looking for the start of the phrase, try the first publication of Joseph Heller's novel at around 1961, roughly nine years before the film made it pure pop culture. If you're looking for the true origin, you might want to look into some of the more modern conflicts of the 20th Century and even before that. There's WWI, which the catch would've been more at home with than WWII or Vietnam. Some of the battles of the American Civil War like Vicksburg, the Battles of the Wilderness, the two Bull Runs, and Antietam would also fit, though a lot more loosely. The Zulu Wars would be better, especially when the British found out just how hardcore the Zulus were in their battles. Then, you have the battles of the Roman Empire, and you can include Carthage to the list.

Basically, war has always been a Catch-22 situation. Doesn't matter the time or the place. People end up in a bad situation and death isn't always the final result. Just look at the present conflicts in the Middle East and tell me if that's a true Catch-22 in progress.

Answer 3

Catch 22 has become a term, inspired by Joseph Heller's novel Catch-22, describing a general situation in which an individual has to accomplish two actions, both of which require that the other one be done first. A familiar example of this circumstance occurs in the context of job searching. In moving from school to a career, one may encounter a Catch-22 where one cannot get a job without work experience, but one cannot gain experience without a job.

Catch-22 situations are sometimes called vicious circles or the chicken or the egg problems.

Answer 4

It comes from the Joseph Heller novel, Catch-22 (1961).

Answer 5

A no-win dilemma or paradox, similar to damned if I do, damned if I don't. For example, You can't get a job without experience, but you can't get experience unless you have a job—it's Catch-22. The term gained currency as the title of a 1961 war novel by Joseph Heller, who referred to an Air Force rule whereby a pilot continuing to fly combat missions without asking for relief is regarded as insane, but is considered sane enough to continue flying if he does make such a request.

Answer 6

The phrase, "Catch 22" comes from the book, entitled, "Catch 22". I am sure it was around before then, but to fully understand the meaning of the phrase, you should read the book. It is not a difficult read and very entertaining.

Answer 7

It comes from the novel "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller.

Answer 8

Read "Catch 22" by Joseph Heller, all will become apparent. Besides... it's a good book too.

Answer 9

Isn't it a clause in an army contract that states that you can be discharge for insanity, like the guy who dressed up as a woman in MASH?