What does the term "Catch 22" refer to/mean?

Question

What does the term "Catch 22" refer to/mean?

Answer 1

Idk i'm just posting this so i can find out aswell.

Answer 2

For example, my boyfriend gets mad at me because I am depressed and unhappy, then when I act happy, he gets angry because he thinks that I am a bad person. just an example

no matter what you do , you are punushed, so you choose the lesser of two evils. Thats a catch 22... but remember, there is always a door, a third way

Answer 3

It originated with a book by that name, written by Joseph Heller.  It means a situation with no solution.  No matter what you do about problem A, problem B will spring up.  You have two friends.  One of them does something that you know will hurt the other.  No matter what you do, you will lose one of them.  It's a "catch 22" situation.

Catch 22 was a rule in the book that would take care of anything not covered by the other rules.

Answer 4

There was a rule in the Army in WW2 that you could be discharged for being mentally ill.  In order to begin the process you had to request the discharge. The army's position was that anybody who wanted out of the army wasn't crazy, so the request would be denied.

I'm not 100% sure this is true.

Answer 5

Catch 22 is a situation in which an action has consequences which make it impossible to pursue that action...