ipl-logo

Examples Of Conformity In One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest

1682 Words7 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Jesus christ motif in one flew over the cuckoos nest

Social Conformity in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest “He Who Marches Out Of Step Hears Another Drum” (Kesey 154). In this modern world, to come to terms with society is to conform to its standards. A society regularly scrutinizes people who do not fit the common mold of norms. Consequently, forcing people to follow a societal norm is detrimental to the health of the mind and body. This struggle between conformers and nonconformers creates a schism in a society that causes a great disparity in ideals. In the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Ken Kesey asserts the overarching importance of individuality through the use of a conflict between the patients and the nurse as a microcosm of society. In the novel, the delusions of the narrator …show more content…

With this in mind, she does not hesitate to exercise her power on the psych ward. Furthermore, Kesey characterizes Nurse Ratched as the antithesis to Randle McMurphy. In the Chief’s mind, he can “smell the machinery inside the way that you smell a motor” (Kesey 4). This statement further shows how the people of the asylum see her as a regent and connects her to the Combine. Nurse Ratched controls every aspect of the patients’ daily lives. Her strict schedule restricts how much time the men will eat, sleep, and play. With no freedom, the men are kept in check. When Randle McMurphy breaks her routine, she is angered and her image falters. On one day, Randle McMurphy tricks her into thinking he is naked. She realizes what he is doing with “her flat red smile going out before her” (Kesey 100). Each incident with McMurphy makes her lose her composure, revealing that she is not as powerful as the men perceive. A powerful example of this is when McMurphy smashes her glass windows to prove to her that she is not going to imprison him. When McMurphy smashes the glass, it “came apart like water splashing, and the nurse threw her hands to her ears” (Kesey 201). Previously, McMurphy decided to yield to Nurse Ratched’s rules in fear that he would be kept forever, but when he breaks the glass, he decides to fight for their freedom …show more content…

As a leader, he is able to unite the men against Nurse Ratched. His rebellion is similar to the rebellion of various countercultures in the 1960s. During group meetings, the Nurse routinely turns the men on each other in what McMurphy describes as a “pecking party” (Kesey 57). The men fall to her trickery because they are afraid of the repercussions of defying her. McMurphy successfully gets the men to rebel against her by sitting in front of the T.V. when it is not the scheduled time, leading to Nurse Ratched “ranting and screaming behind us” (Kesey 144). Her inability to stop the men further reveals to them that she does not truly control them. They have the free will to do what they want to do; not what society wants them to do. In effect, these men are transformed by the freedom that McMurphy brings. While Nurse Ratched reproach the men for expressing any sexuality, McMurphy encourages them to embrace it. Billy Bibbit is a target of this shaming, but he falls in love when he is introduced to Candy by McMurphy. The tendency of society to have a strict control on sexuality is shown through this. Instead of shaming sexuality, society should be accepting it as human nature. Overall, the qualities of Randle McMullen make him a Christ-figure. He leads the men as the leader of a rebellion

Show More
Related
710 Words | 3 Pages

Throughout the beginning of the novel it is evident that some characters over use their powers, one of these characters being Nurse Ratched. Nurse Ratched uses her position in the ward to take advantage of the patients and make sure that they adhere to everyone of her daunting commands. Nurse Ratched “tends to get real put out if something keeps her outfit from running like a smooth, accurate, precision-made machine” (Kesey 28) because she has been on the ward for so long that when something doesn 't go according to her plan, she starts to get mad and will often try to use her power to come down on the patient 's. Nurse Ratched is in control of the whole ward and when someone does something that isn 't in her manuscript she gets irritated. The ward will be run her way and only her way, “ under her rule the ward inside is almost completely adjusted to surroundings” (Kesey 28).

Read More
447 Words | 2 Pages

Nurse Ratched’s desire for control, in Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, allows her to manipulate the entire hospital ward into believing her work is for the betterment of the patients. Significantly, Nurse Ratched appears doll-like: hair in a tight bun, a neatly pressed uniform, and “too-red” lipstick (48). Traditionally, dolls, like other toys, are made to occupy the unruly minds of young children. By comparing Nurse Ratched to a child’s toy, Kesey implies she is a mere distraction to the patients from their mental impairments.

Read More
954 Words | 4 Pages

Kesey’s perspective on society is illuminated through Nurse Ratched’s tyrannical ward which has been influenced by the time, place and the culture of 1960s American Society. ADOLF HITLER / MCCARTHYISM Ken Kesey’s, One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest presents a confronting satire, in which Nurse Ratched’s oppressive and tyrannical government in the ward prevents freedom and self-expression. Nurse Ratched’s manipulation of patients and tyrannical rule over the ward is comparable to Adolf Hitler’s rule over Nazi Germany. Similar to Adolf Hitler, an egomaniac, Nurse Ratched, portrays institutional authorities, mercilessly punishing patients and manipulating them into conforming with her ideas of a perfect society.

Read More
1000 Words | 4 Pages

Conformity is defined in the dictionary as “compliance with standards, rules, or laws.” Is Conformity bad? In some cases it could help calm situations and prevent negative events. In other instances too much Conformity can lead to the lack of individuality. One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest raises the question, where is the balance between too much control and too little?

Read More
1124 Words | 5 Pages

The Beat Generation of the 1950’s and early 1960’s encouraged a new lifestyle for young Americans striving for individualism and freedom, which included rock and roll music, long hair, relaxed style attire, vegetarianism, and experimenting with drugs (“Beat Movement”). Many young Americans of this era wanted to experiment with new social and cultural concepts, rebelling against “normal” American life. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, written by Ken Kesey, portrays the gruesomeness of conformity through the lives of patients in one of the asylum’s wards. The novel shows how the patients are confined to strict rules and limited freedom because of Nurse Ratched’s power.

Read More
1389 Words | 6 Pages

Moral Lense Literary Analysis of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest The 1950s, the context of which One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, a novel by Ken Kesey, was written, was called the Era of Conformity. During this time, the American social atmosphere was quiet conformed, in that everyone was expected to follow the same, fixed format of behavior in society, and the ones who stand out of being not the same would likely be “beaten down” by the social norms. In the novel, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Kesey argues that it is immoral for society to simply push its beliefs onto the people who are deemed different, as it is unfair and could lead to destructive results. First of all, it is unjust for people who are deemed unalike from others in society to be forced into the preset way of conduct because human tend to have dissimilar nature.

Read More
778 Words | 4 Pages

Throughout Ken Kesey’s, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, the balance of power is challenged in the psychiatric ward. Out of the several leaders that appear in the novel, Nurse Ratched and McMurphy are the most prominent. During Nurse Ratched and McMurphy struggle for power, they share many of the same qualities. It is argued that: “McMurphy and Ratched are alike in intelligence, military service, distinctive (if opposite) clothing, and conventionally masculine qualities” (Evans). These small similarities; however, do not distract the characters from fighting for their individual beliefs.

Read More
1047 Words | 5 Pages

To dehumanize someone is to strip an individual of their individuality including their human attributes and qualities. For as long as mental illnesses have been known, people have treated those with illnesses much differently. A particular assertion i tend to agree with is that people who have mental disorders are always dehumanized in some way. This dehumanization is shown in One flew over the Cuckoo’s nest alongside other perspectives such as a live and pop culture point of view.

Read More
1459 Words | 6 Pages

By weakening McMurphy’s power in the ward, she creates an environment where can continue to thrive in her power through the systems she has set in place. However, Nurse Ratched’s plan does not succeed and McMurphy is allowed to proceed with his fishing trip. He continues to undermine the nurse’s authority to the point where he physically assults her after she blames Billy’s death on him. His actions give Nurse Ratched an opportunity to give him the ultimate punishment, a

Read More
1380 Words | 6 Pages

In the struggle between freedom and power, McMurphy’s sacrifice allows freedom to prevail. His leadership in a rising rebellion parallels many of the countercultures that arose during the 1960s. His rebellion fights against Nurse Ratched in the way that the countercultures fought against the government and society in the past to the present. The men in the asylum are unknowingly unhappy before the arrival of McMurphy. Through his antics, the men are saved from society in the form of Nurse Ratched’s regime.

Read More
755 Words | 4 Pages

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, by Ken Kesey, considers the qualities in which society determines sanity. The label of insanity is given when someone is different from the perceived norm. Conversely, a person is perceived as sane when their behavior is consistent with the beliefs of the majority. Although the characters of this novel are patients of a mental institution, they all show qualities of sanity. The book is narrated by Chief Brodmen, an observant chronic psychiatric patient, who many believe to be deaf and dumb.

Read More
993 Words | 4 Pages

Kesey has used characterisation to get the idea that in this novel there are aspects of venerability and strength. In Nurse Ratched’s case, Kesey has made it so that she is shown with strength and power over the whole ward, including the black men in white, other nurses, and mainly the patients. An example of Nurse Ratched’s power over the patients is when she says to Billy Bibbit, “What worries me, Billy, ' she said- I could hear the change in her voice- 'is how your mother is going to take this.” This shows how one sentence was able to debilitate Billy into begging Nurse for forgiveness and restraint of telling his mother.

Read More
1288 Words | 6 Pages

His rebellious and free mind makes the patients open their eyes and see how the have been suppressed. His appearance is a breath of fresh air and a look into the outside world for the patients. This clearly weakens Nurse Ratched’s powers, and she sees him as a large threat. One way or another, McMurphy tends to instigate changes of scenery. He manages to move everyone away from her music and watchful eye into the old tube room.

Read More
1035 Words | 5 Pages

Nurse Ratched exposes the men’s weaknesses by getting each of them to point out each other’s flaws. Kesey shows that when women hold leadership roles, it takes away a man 's ability to be a man and leaves the man with physical damage. In the story, McMurphy explains to Harding about Nurse Ratched and how she is manipulating the men, using her influence to emasculate them. He says, “The hell with that; she’s a bitch and a buzzard and a ball-cutter, and don’t kid me, you know what I’m talking about” (Kesey, 61). By using the phrase “ball-cutter,” Kesey implies that because she is a woman and has more power than the men, she is depriving them of what makes them a man.

Read More
1010 Words | 5 Pages

The movie was mostly focused on the feud between the warden/nurse Ms. Ratched and McMurphy. McMurphy tried to go against the hard-set plan set by the institution. More he tried to establish dominance and leadership within the group. This threatened the nurse’s ways of subduing patients, and they felt of less importance in their own institution. This led to a bitter rivalry and because of it the nurse tried to subdue, with same techniques as with other patients, McMurphy even after realizing that he was not a mentally unstable person.

Read More

More about Examples Of Conformity In One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest

Open Document