Theme Of Guilt In One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest

Guilt is a theme that Ordinary People and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest recognize. Ordinary People revolves around two perspectives coming from a father and son about the death of a loved one. However, in the clip from One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Nurse Ratched and Billy are two characters who are polar opposites from one another. Furthermore, the power of guilt compels the two protagonists in both works. Unlike Ordinary People, lighting exposure and camera frames in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest expresses Billy’s guilt when Nurse Ratched humiliates him in front of the other patients. In the film, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, the camera proxemics focus on characters, Nurse Ratched and Billy. The setting takes place in the psych ward, where all the other patients watch Nurse Ratched punish Billy for sleeping with a woman. At first, Billy thought that sleeping with a woman encouraged his masculinity, but Nurse Ratched scolding him causes him to feel guilty over his “inappropriate” actions. The camera framing between the two characters in this particular scene differentiates with the spacing of

In a way, he and Billy resemble compulsive emotions such as guilt. However, Con overcomes his guilt with the help of his therapist, Dr. Berger. Berger enlightens him by saying, “The thing that hurts you is sitting on yourself. It is screwing you up, leading you off on chases that don’t go anywhere.” (Guest 27). Based on this quote, Berg tells Con to stop dwelling in the past, and quit feeling guilt over Buck’s death. In Billy’s situation, Nurse Ratched puts Billy in a vulnerable state, finds the opportunity to make him feel guilty. As a result, Billy commits due to the guilt he felt over the one thing that made him feel free. Moreover, Con learns to control his emotions, and accepts Buck’s death by letting go of his