Chapter 7
Chapter 7 – McWatt
Yossarian dislikes McWatt because McWatt is sane and normal, which of course is insane and abnormal to Yossarian. McWatt is not afraid to risk his life, thinks war is perfectly normal, and continues to live his life as he did before the war; all things which Yossarian finds disturbingly insane.
Milo, the chef, and Yossarian engage in a discussion regarding the fact that Doc Daneeka has written a note allowing Yossarian to take as much fruit and fruit juice from the mess as he wants. This privilege is designed to help Yossarian’s liver, which Yossarian does not want to improve at all. So Yossarian takes the fruit and fruit juices, but never eats or drinks any of it, instead giving it away to others.
Yossarian also tells Milo of the incident in which Corporal Snark, Milo’s assistant and an insufferable snob, put bits of soap into all the men’s food in order to prove that the men would not be able to taste the difference. The result was that all the men who ate that meal became violently ill, missions were cancelled, and Snark was demoted.
The chapter ends with a bizarre incident. McWatt’s bedsheet is stolen by an Italian thief with a sweet tooth. Milo borrows Yossarian’s bag of dates and uses it to distract the thief, at which point he takes the bedsheet back. He then tears it into sections, giving a quarter to himself (for having retrieved it), a quarter to Yossarian (for having supplied the bag of dates) and a half to McWatt (as it belonged to him in the first place).
