| Popis: |
Like Levmore, Masur observes that the quintessential feature of the absurdist guidelines in Catch-22 is that they are all structured as rules, rather than standards. There is no discretion available to the officers charged with implementing the army’s battery of legal commands and regulations. But whereas Levmore sees this as unrealistic, Masur argues that strict legal rules are endemic to large organizations such as the army. Governing millions of people is an immense logistical and organizational challenge. Upper-level commanders must ensure that mid-level officers follow orders consistently; mid-level officers must ensure that they are treating their soldiers equitably and without favoritism. In fact, as Masur observes, the modern US Army operates under the guidance of hundreds of minute and often preposterous rules, just like the army in Heller’s novel. In this respect, Catch-22 succeeds in capturing important features of both war and other types of mass mobilization. |
