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The one who flew over the cuckoo's nest article analysis
Analysis of one flew over the cuckoo´s nest
One flew over the cuckoo's nest summary psychology
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When McMurphy joins the ward, he questions the Nurse’s influence and control. Early into his stay, one of the other acutes tells McMurphy that Nurse Ratched will always win. He says, “She’ll go on winning, just like the Combine, because she has all the power of the Combine behind her. She doesn't lose on her losses, but she wins on ours”(88). Not only does Nurse Ratched hold the position of power in the ward, but she is also backed by the combine.
The Origins of Madness in One Who Flew Off The Cuckoo's Nest The book, One who Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, by Ken Kesey, is an eccentric story on the cruel treatment of patients within psychiatric wards in the 1960s. It is told from the narration of an indigenous man, named Chief Bromden, a character who is deeply conflicted and wounded inside, as he narrates the story of another patient McMurphy. McMurphy is not like Chief, nor any of the other patients for that matter, for he is a man who refuses to follow the wards rules and does whatever it takes in the book to strip the head nurse, Miss Ratched, of her power, in a fight for the patients, sovereignty within the ward. His rebellious attitude unfolds and the consequences begin unveiling
No matter where one is the world their always exists two important elements. The element of chaos, and the element of control. Both of these elements find themselves rather clearly defined and on display in Ken Kesey’s novel “One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest”. The representative of chaos: Randell McMurphy, and of control: Nurse Ratched.. Throughout the novel the two spar over their conflicting ideologies on how life should be in the ward, and how the men there should act.
In both novels, the situation that the characters are placed in is fertile ground for any unscrupulous anti-hero’s perfect rebellion. In McMurphy’s case, Nurse Ratched has a chokehold on all the patients and almost all the staff, even though she isn’t the formal leader. She is a master manipulator, and through this, creates a sense of total powerlessness. “All twenty of them, raising not just for watching TV, but against the Big Nurse, against her trying to send McMurphy to Disturbed, against the way she’s talked and acted and beat them down for years” (Kesey 81). McMurphy constantly disobeys her wishes and plots events, ranging from minor to major, that rebel against the Nurse.
The story is narrated by Chief Bromden, a patient in the psychiatric hospital, who has hallucinations as well as delusions. He acts though he is deaf wanting to have very little attention, but since the workers actually believe, sometime they’ll have him do their work (ex. mop for them). The narrator first starts off the story by explaining the main characters are and difference between the patients. He first talks about Nurse Ratched, the leader of the whole hospital, and how anything she says goes. He then talks about the difference in the patients, Acutes are the ones who can be cured and Chronics are the ones who can’t.
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.
The controversial novel ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,’ written by Ken Kesey (1962) explores many concepts thematically, these being referenced to frequently through the usage of various literary techniques. These explored themes all being widely discussed topics within the communist-ridden, and paranoia instilled period in which the novel was created. The antagonist, Nurse Ratched is metaphorically conveyed through her name via a pun as a device used to force cogs into place whilst also foreshadowing future events, this metaphor shaping the readers understanding of central ideas greatly. Nurse Ratched is also expressed as being the emblem for the Combine by Chief Bromden, this being reinforced with the motif of machinery and mechanical
Weather in literature is often used to symbolize the mood or mental state in which a character experiences. For example, rain is commonly associated with sadness. As it is commonly identified, fog is a cloudy element of weather that affects one’s ability to see clearly, however, it is also used in literature to represent a character’s lack of clarity. Throughout One Who Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey, the motif of fog is used to represent the mental instability and confusion Bromden experiences under Nurse Ratched’s ward. As the story progresses and Bromden gains confidence, the fog diminishes and he is able to overcome the Big Nurse.
In addition, his dissatisfying slurs about Nurse Ratched’s body made him look like a terrible human being. Next, when McMurphy slammed his hand twice through the Nurses’ Stations glass he made a dangerous situation that should and was reprehensible. Lastly, with McMurphy’s indiscretions, Nurse Ratched had to make the safe decision by turning the other patient's opinions against McMurphy’s trip. The ultimate message was to portray that sometimes with the mentally ill there are right times when harsh, strict, and orderly rules enforced by someone who is strong is a good
Title: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest The title One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is directly referring to a character. The character who went over the Cuckoo’s Nest was McMurphy. This makes the connection that the asylum is truly a Cuckoo’s Nest full of insane men.
While he understands right from wrong, he pursues his own interests for power and gratification. He “carr[ies] this disdain for rules to the extreme, calculating and scheming ruthlessly” (Kulbarsh 16). McMurphy constantly makes trouble for himself because he doesn’t feel the need to please others unlike the other patients who are so controlled by fear that to step one foot out of line would be a death wish. As a new patient, McMurphy is given the prime opportunity to infiltrate the system.
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.
The author of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Kesey, presents the ideas about venerability and strength by using his characters and the way they interact with each other to establish whether they are a submissive or a dominant, tamed or leading, venerable or strong. Kesey uses strong personalities to show the drastic difference between someone who is vulnerable and someone who is strong. Nurse Ratchet is a perfect example of how Kasey presents the idea of strength over the venerability of others (the patients). Keys also exhibited vulnerability throughout characters such as Chief Bromden and his extensive habit of hiding himself in all means possible from Nurse Ratchet. Another idea presented by Kesey is a character’s false thought on what
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.
The movie “One flew over the cuckoo’s nest” gives an inside look into the life of a patient living in a mental institution; helping to give a new definition of mental illnesses. From a medical standpoint, determinants of mental illness are considered to be internal; physically and in the mind, while they are seen as external; in the environment or the person’s social situation, from a sociological perspective (Stockton, 2014). Additionally, the movie also explores the idea of power relations that exist between an authorized person (Nurse Ratched) and a patient and further looks into the punishment a deviant actor receives (ie. McMurphy contesting Nurse Ratched). One of the sociological themes that I have observed is conformity.
