Capitalism and Economic System: Joseph Heller’s Satire in Catch-22

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Recommended: Analysis of capitalism

Capitalism is an economic system where a country’s production, distribution of goods and services, for profit are controlled by private owners in a competitive free market. Capitalism is the economic system that the United States has always been using and is commonly associated with the American Dream; where anyone can become rich and successful regardless of background and environment. In Joseph Heller’s satire, Catch-22, Heller satirizes multiple vice and follies that exists in the United States such as religion and bureaucracy of the U.S government. One of Heller’s criticism of society, capitalism, is still a prevalent issue to this day. In Catch-22, the squadron’s mess officer of the U.S Army Air corps in Pianosa, Milo Minderbinder, is a satire of a modern businessman and a character that Heller uses to expose how dangerous the profit-mentality of capitalism can be. Heller’s text in challenging a specific vice or folly through satire proved to be exceptionally effective as today’s current issues continue to mimic those in Catch-22.
Milo Minderbinder is a man that has no allegiance to any country or moral and is only dedicated on profit. Milo’s role as a mess officer started off with the intention of feeding the men with the best food he could give, but eventually becomes a syndicate; Milo & Minderbinder Enterprises; where goods are transported through planes without regards of the safety of the men that support it. When Milo and the other men in the army arrive to a hotel in Cairo, Milo purchases all the Egyptian cotton believing that it was a great business deal. Only to soon find out that he cannot sell the cotton because it is not in demand and can ruin his business. To solve the problem, Milo devises a plan to get rid of...

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..., 1979. Illinois: From Papers on Language & Literature 15, no. 3. © 1979 by the Board of Trustees of Southern Illinois University, 1979. Print. .
Garside, Juliette. "Child labour uncovered in Apple's supply chain." The Guardian. The Guardian, 25 Jan 2013. Web. 7 Apr 2014. .
Hesseldahl, Arik. "Teardown Shows iPhone 5S Costs at Least $199 to Build, $173 for the 5C."http://allthingsd.com/. Dow Jones & Company Inc., 24 Sep 2013. Web. 7 Apr 2014. .
"Apple products made with child labor – internal report.”http://rt.com/. Autonomous Nonprofit Organization “TV-Novosti”, 26 Jan 2013. Web. 7 Apr 2014. .

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