Peter Isaksen

I’m currently reading Catch-22, so far I proclaim it great!

Memorizing the book: A Rulebook for Arguments, is not a waste of time.(If you do not have it, you can get it used for one US cent on amazon).  As you can see at the bottom; catch-22 can be formalized; you’re damned if you requests an evaluation and damned if you don’t .

spoiler alert(wikipedia:)!

“Catch-22″ is a military rule, the self-contradictory circular logic that, for example, prevents anyone from avoiding combat missions. In Heller’s own words:

There was only one catch and that was Catch-22, which specified that a concern for one’s safety in the face of dangers that were real and immediate was the process of a rational mind. Orr was crazy and could be grounded. All he had to do was ask; and as soon as he did, he would no longer be crazy and would have to fly more missions. Orr would be crazy to fly more missions and sane if he didn’t, but if he were sane he had to fly them. If he flew them he was crazy and didn’t have to; but if he didn’t want to he was sane and had to. Yossarian was moved very deeply by the absolute simplicity of this clause of Catch-22 and let out a respectful whistle.

Therefore, Catch-22 ensures that no pilot can ever be grounded for being insane even if he is.

A logical formulation of this situation is:

1. (Premise: If a person is excused from flying (E), that must be because he is both insane (I), and requests an evaluation (R));
2. (Premise: If a person is insane (I), he should not realize that he is, and would have no reason to request an evaluation)
3. (2, Definition of implication: since an insane person would not request an evaluation, it follows that all people must either not be insane, or not request an evaluation)
4. (3, De Morgan: since all people must either not be insane, or not request an evaluation, it follows that no person is both insane and requests an evaluation)
5. (4, 1, Modus Tollens: since a person may be excused from flying only if he is both insane and requests an evaluation, but no person can be both insane and request an evaluation, it follows that no person can be excused from flying)