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The Origin of Catch-22

Learn the meaning and origin of the famous phrase Catch-22 in this A2 English reading lesson.

Title

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Learn the meaning and origin of the famous phrase Catch-22 in this A2 English reading lesson.

Reading Text

Have you ever heard the phrase 'Catch-22'? It means a difficult situation where you cannot escape because of a rule. The term comes from a famous book called Catch-22, written by Joseph Heller in 1961. The book is about soldiers in World War II. In the story, there is a rule called Catch-22. A pilot can ask to stop flying dangerous missions if he is crazy. But, asking to stop flying shows that he wants to be safe. Wanting to be safe means he is not crazy! So, if he is crazy, he must fly. If he is normal, he must fly. He cannot escape. Today, people use 'Catch-22' for any problem with no solution. For example, you need experience to get a job, but you need a job to get experience. That is a Catch-22!

Activities

Vocabulary

Items:

Label: escape
Answer: def1
Label: famous
Answer: def2
Label: dangerous
Answer: def3
Label: normal
Answer: def4
Label: experience
Answer: def5

Definitions:

Text: to get free from a bad situation
Text: known by many people
Text: not safe; able to hurt you
Text: usual, ordinary, or expected
Text: knowledge or skill you get from doing a job

Fill In The Blanks:

Before: The bird tried to
After: from its cage.
Answer: escape
Before: Leonardo da Vinci is a
After: painter.
Answer: famous
Before: It is
After: to cross the street without looking.
Answer: dangerous
Before: It is
After: to feel tired after a long walk.
Answer: normal
Before: You need five years of
After: for this job.
Answer: experience

Comprehension

Questions:

Text: 'Catch-22' means a very easy problem.
Answer: false
Text: The phrase comes from a book written in 1961.
Answer: true
Text: In the book, the rule helps pilots stop flying easily.
Answer: false
Text: If a pilot wants to be safe, the rule says he is not crazy.
Answer: true
Text: Needing a job to get experience is an example of a Catch-22.
Answer: true

Scrambled:

Text: cannot / because / escape / rule / you / of / a
Answer: You cannot escape because of a rule.
Text: from / term / book / comes / famous / the / a
Answer: The term comes from a famous book.
Text: is / the / book / World / War / II / about
Answer: The book is about World War II.
Text: people / Catch-22 / problem / use / any / for
Answer: People use Catch-22 for any problem.
Text: job / you / experience / get / need / to / a
Answer: You need experience to get a job.

Written Expression

Questions:

Text: Have you ever been in a Catch-22 situation? Tell me about it.
Text: Why do you think Joseph Heller wrote this book about soldiers?

Examples:

Example 1: I needed a car to get to work, but I needed money from work to buy a car.

Example 2: I think he wrote it to help us understand how difficult some jobs are.

Critical Thinking

Title: Think Deeper

Instructions:

How do rules sometimes make situations harder instead of easier?
Discuss with a partner: What is another example of a Catch-22 in school or daily life?