The Pros And Cons Of Chief Bromden

We are expected by each other to look a certain way, buy certain things, and act accordingly. There is a cardboard-cutout version of everyone that we must adhere to in order to be deemed pleasing by society. When we don’t quite fit in – when we don’t put forth an illusion and force people to confront reality – we are left alone.Until a time where those around you finally see that there is more to a human being than what they look like on the outside. It is often said that individuals are of what they do not know, terrified of what they do know, and frightened of what they have the potential of finding out. They are fearful, because they believe the way they are perceived is not reflective of the way they perceive themselves, thus creating

Chief described Nurse Ratched as the head force of a hospital he calls “the nationwide Combine.” (pg.192) With an overarching power to the administration and the patients under her ward, her commands went beyond meetings, medications and trickled down to policy creation, mandating as to how Chief should conduct himself. Bromden is perceived as someone who is diagnosed of being unable to thrive in a society, therefore, made to accept that he is deviant; that he does not follow or have a grasp to social norms that are given by nature. Consequently, Bromden shifts the way he perceives himself, making himself into a conformist who “lose [himself] in the fog.” (pg.42) How others view him becomes how he views himself, and the identity he puts on. Since society expects him to conform to what is regarded as the “norm” in terms of behaviour and attitude, he pulls on a facade to comply to these social conventions. This is demonstrated clearly when he pretends to act “deaf and dumb” as a loss of self-esteem and feelings of ineffectiveness. From the negative perceptions of society, Bromden disguised himself with a false identity, limiting his freedom as an individual and altering his perception to suit the image of how society views him. By living in an environment where individuals are supressed to act a certain way, Chief becomes the embodiment of what others believe and how he should act in different situations, consequently, shaping his identity and preventing him to live within a truthful existence. The conformity to society’s standards is insured by the operation of the Combine— an entity that unifies individuals to further its own corporate interests and creates a depersonalized society that sustains the conformity of the therapeutic treatment he observes. As a result, Bromden’s identity is one that society has imposed