One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest A Down

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest A Down and Dirty Summation Jump to first page

Emerging Themes and Motifs Jump to first page

Individual vs. Institutional Authority n n Randall Patrick Mc. Murphy--RPM, betting, bragging, laughing, selfreliant “the Combine didn’t get him, ” “a moving target is hard to hit” Note the attendants’ reaction to him Chief Bromden’s father Jump to first page

Betting and believing in oneself Learning to stand up for oneself “But I tried, though. Goddammit, I sure as hell did than much, now, didn’t I? ” Cheswick’s cigarettes Jump to first page

Power and Powerlessness n n “We are victims of a matriarchy here. ” Stereotypes of women and blacks rabbits and wolves machines Jump to first page

Power and Powerlessness n n Guilt, fear, shame Images of emasculation, castration What does the novel ultimately say about the nature of power? Images of bigness and size Jump to first page

n n n government and minorities-Columbia Gorge The Fishing Trip “Never before did I realize that mental illness could have the aspect of power, power. ” Jump to first page

The Combine n n Rules and Order--”Red Chinese Prison Camp” Mechanized Control--time, fog, music, radio, television The Shock Shop Jump to first page

n n Nurse Ratched, wires, machines with flaw inside that can’t be repaired “The Ward is a factory for the Combine. ” routines, policies Jump to first page

n categories rather than individual patients--Acutes & Chronics, Walkers, Wheelers, Vegetables, etc. Jump to first page

Sanity vs. Insanity n n n Truth vs. Fiction “But it’s the truth even if it didn’t happen. ” Acutes Mc. Murphy other nurses at the end of the book Jump to first page

Gambling Jump to first page

Fog Machine n n n Drugs and medication Safety and withrawal “I can’t do nothing for you either, Billy. You know that. None of us can. Protection/hiding or control Cover up “He keeps trying to drag us out of the fog, out in the open where we’d be easy to get at. ” Jump to first page

Mc. Murphy n n n Tattoos--”She gave them to me because she said I was a symbol. ” RPM martyr Jump to first page

Religious images n n “Matryr or saint” lack of faith Jump to first page

Violence and Fights Jump to first page

Quotations? Jump to first page