Chapter 19: Colonel Cathcart

Major Danby, the new group executive officer, arrives at the hospital. He and the chaplain are the only two people in the hospital who are not ill. They sit and discuss the meaning of life. Major Danby is an intelligent man who reads a lot of books and is deeply concerned about the state of the world. He believes that people should be more concerned about the suffering of others and less concerned about their own personal gain. He is disgusted by the lack of morality in the world and the way that people are willing to do anything to get ahead, including sacrificing the lives of others. Major Danby and the chaplain have a deep and philosophical conversation about the nature of good and evil, and the chaplain is deeply moved by Major Danby's insights. However, their conversation is interrupted when Yossarian arrives, pretending to be a dying soldier, and Major Danby is forced to leave.