adrift in time; significance of non-linear structure in joseph heller’s catch-22

adrift in time; significance of non-linear structure in joseph heller’s catch-22

a story can be presented in a linear or in a non-linear structure. the author chooses whether to write in a linear structure or in a non-linear one based on his intentions. although, most classic writers use a linear structure to narrate they stories, the more modern authors try to narrate their stories in a non-linear structure by the help of analepsis and prolepsis. the topic of this research paper is thus related to this notion. the novel i choose to analyze its story telling structure is catch-22 by joseph heller. the novel has a non-linear structure. in the course of the paper, i will examine the non-linear structure of catch-22 and analyze its significance. i will conclude that the non-linear structure of the novel helps the narrator to depict war as an absurd and chaotic situation that takes human lives for ridiculous reasons, points out to the psychology and the mental struggle of soldiers, and engaged readers deeply with the text to have more effects on them.