How does Captain Black exemplify the unethical nature of
power in Catch-22?
Captain Black is one of the prominent characters in the novel Catch-22, and
he exemplifies the unethical nature of power. As the head of the "vigilant"
committee, Captain Black abuses his power to enforce conformity and stifle
dissent, going so far as to kick people out of the bombing mission, deny leave
requests, or even court-martial them. He does all this while extolling the
virtues of democracy and free speech, yet he is all for censorship and
suppression of opinions contradictory to his. He uses his power to make
others feel inferior, and anyone he perceives as a threat to his authority is
either ostracized or punished.
Captain Black's behavior is a representation of the corruption of leadership,
showing that power can be easily misused, and those who hold it can quickly
lose their moral compass. The character shows that those in positions of
authority are susceptible to abuses of power, and their only concern is to
preserve their status quo, often at the expense of others.
In conclusion, Captain Black is an example of how power can lead to a lack of
empathy, and how those in positions of authority can become authoritarian
and oppressive. Ironically, although he claims to protect democracy, he
violates it at every turn in his quest for power and self-preservation.
References:
- Heller, J. Catch-22. Simon and Schuster, 2011.
- Kelly, J. F. "The Satirical Narrative Techniques of Catch-22 and Slaughterhouse-Five."
College Literature, vol. 14, no. 1, 1987, pp. 36–46. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/25111943.