Novelists and playwrights have often seen madness with a discerning Eye.

Select either Wuthering Heights or Catch-22 in which a characters apparent

madness or irrational behavior plays an important role. Then write a wellorganized essay in which you explain what this delusion or eccentric behavior
consists of and how it might be judged reasonable. Explain the significance of the
madness to the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot.

In order for Yossarian to survive in the absurd world that is WWII, he himself must be absurd,
and a strange case of double negatives, Yossarian turns out to be the most logical and levelheaded character in the novel, as his irrationality is linked to his instinct of self-preservation, an
intrinsic trait in all humans, and allows him to reconcile his conflicting beliefs in such a crazy
world.
A notable characteristic of madness is a strong cognitive dissonance, in which one holds
conflicting beliefs to be true. In the novel, Yossarian must grapple with the moral tug-of-war
that is ensuing between his motto of self-preservation and the empathy and compassion he has
for his friends. This conflict comes to a climax when he is offered an unbelievable deal by his
superiors - he can go home, as long as he makes friends with the superiors. This deal is a
veritable deal with the devil, though, because if he does accept the deal, then he is siding with

Commented [SR1]: Here, the writers thesis is strong,

addressing the prompts question of whether or not
Yossarians apparent madness may be deemed reasonable,
as well as providing insight as to why.
Commented [SR2]: A general statement about the
writers observations of the world. This is good, but tricky,
because if it is not tied back to the task at hand, it can be
disruptive to the writers purpose.
Commented [SR3]: Yeah! The previous sentence is not
only made relevant to the analysis, but this also adds to the
effectiveness of the argument by linking it back to the
thesis.
Commented [SR4]: Good use of summary - enough to
help explain the point, but not so much as to become
cumbersome.

the war bureaucracy and condemning his friends to certain death in the war. On the other
hand, though, if he does not accept the deal, he himself is condemned to die for a seemingly
meaningless cause. And so, he chooses the seemingly least logical route - he runs away,
choosing neither path. Choosing this illogical route, he effectively reconciles his conflicting
beliefs, and frees himself from the shackles of his cognitive dissonance, which provides him
with more clarity of mind than any of his sane comrades hold.

Commented [SR5]: Analysis of the prior sentence, as it

pertains to the thesis.
Commented [SR6]: In addition to the amazing word
choice, which is not only highly academic in nature, but
more importantly, it is exactly matched to the writers
purpose, this sentence effectively reiterates, without simply
repeating, the writers thesis.