Jossarian, lead bombardier of the 256th squadron, struggles to retain his sanity and hopes to get a medical discharge by pretending to be insane. The story centers on the USAF regulation which suggests that to fly dangerous combat missions must be considered insane, but if the airmen seek to be relieved on grounds of mental reasons, the request proves their sanity. Finally, after his friends are killed or missing, Yossarian decides to desert to Sweden. The non-chronological, fragmented narrative underlines the pointless series of missions and displacement that war produces. Heller also expressed the emerging rebelliousness of the Vietnam generation, and the dissatisfaction of the life in a standardized mass society governed by corporate capitalism and irrational logic.
Some characters are similar, too.
Developed from Robert Altman's hit movie about the misadventures of Mobile Army Surgical Hospital during the Korean War. A sequel, After Mash , presented several of the unit adjusting to civilian life. He did not watch the TV version because of its liberal sensibilities.