Chief Bromden In One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest

Throughout One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest the narrator, Chief Bromden, has a slight mystery surrounding him, like several of the other characters. That is, what mental illness is Chief in the ward for exactly? The answer might seem like the obvious post traumatic stress disorder, but is it really? While he does have the necessary traumatic experience for PTSD to occur, he doesn’t necessarily show all the symptoms. In fact he shows just as many symptoms for depersonalization/derealization disorder and schizophrenia as he does PTSD. So just what mental illness does Chief Bromden truly have?
According to the ptsd.va.gov, “PTSD (posttraumatic stress disorder) is a mental health problem that some people develop after experiencing or witnessing

These come in different forms for everyone. In Chief the flashbacks come in the form of the small breaks from the story to talk about thing that happened in the war, this can be considered a bit of a stretch as it is unsure if these flashbacks are happening at the present time the story is taking place or if they have any physical effects on Chief. The only slight evidence of Chief avoiding something connected to the war is his avoidance of the shock shop which he claims causes a wail like that of an air raid siren. Chief is also shown to be somewhat put on edge by the nurses and the orderlies would seem to have a difficulty sleeping when he doesn’t take the red pill given to him. Lastly, there is also evidence of Chief having negative thoughts about society due to events, though some of these aren’t connected to the war, and negative thoughts about himself, his not being “big” anymore. So it appears that he fits the criteria of symptoms of PTSD, however some of these can be considered a stretch as it is unclear as to whether or not these truly have impact on him or if he is just recounting facts he’s learned. Psychiatry.org describes depersonalization/derealization disorders and their symptoms as experiences of unreality or detachment from one’s mind, self or body. People may feel as if they are

To an extent Chief shows all, if not most, of these symptoms. Delusions differ from hallucinations, as delusions are believing that someone is always watching you or out to get you. Chief shows this every time he mentions the combine; specifically when Tater had been released after being lobotomized and Chief said e then lobotomized his wife and daughter to spread it, and when he broke his pill and claimed there was small machines that turned to dust once they came in contact with air. Chief’s hallucinations appear in the form of the machinery; miss ratchet becoming a tractor sized monster, when he saw everyone float past in the fog, and, most importantly, when the floor lowered down into the basement and other patients were being hung by their heels and cut open exposing all those gears and rust. The disorganized thinking comes in the form of Chief’s jumping around in talking about the ward, the village, the war, and any other experience from before the war while recounting his story. Negative symptoms includes different behaviors like social withdrawal, extreme apathy, lack of motivation, and/or emotional flatness. This is somewhat seen in Chief’s acting like he’s “deaf and dumb”. He does not interact with anyone unless they com to him and get him to, he feels trying to change the ward is pointless and will not work, and he