The Big Nurse In 'One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest'

Nurse Ratched was very controlling and wanted complete power. This caused many of the patients to rebel and break loose from her control. McMurphy lead the ward in this uprising. From brushing his teeth too early to sneaking prostitutes into the ward, he shows Nurse Ratched that she cannot rule him. This story reminded me of Malala Yousafzai and her retaliation against the Taliban.

Nurse Ratched is very bossy and strict with the patients in the ward. Many of the patients find her intimidating, until a new patient shows up

These elements keep the nurse in power, as many of the patients fear being the target of one of these meetings and worry that they will again be betrayed by others. By introducing order through these activities, Nurse Ratched undermines the safety of the patients that should be under her care and keeps them silent. Nurse Ratched's oppressive order is not only seen in a literal sense, but also through the attitudes of the patients under her care. Chief Bromden describes the nurse as being “able to set the wall clock at whatever speed she wants just by turning one of those dials“ (Kesey 70). Nurse Ratched’s control over the patients’ lives extends to the point where

Nurse Ratched who ruled with an iron handed fist to keep her distance away from the patients of the ward and establish her role of a women in power in the institution. This from the beginning of the book sets a

While The Big Nurse throws a horrifying tantrum about all the rules that McMurphy is breaking, McMurphy remains strong and steadfast. He makes a bold move and “winks at the nurse and shrugs and wraps the towel, drapes it over her shoulder like she was a wooden rack... I can see he had his shorts on under his towel all along... she’s glaring at those big white whales leaping round on his shorts in pure outrage” (90). McMurphy’s playful personality due to his individuality, helps him win this battle against the uptight nurse.

McMurphy was able to defy authority and break down the ward’s structure. He knew that standing up to Nurse Ratched would help all of the patients. “She must be conquered before the men can evolve into psychologically healthy individuals. McMurphy, as the embodiment of the Hero, accomplishes that task for them, leading to the liberation of Chief Broom, Harding, and the other men who gain strength from his sacrifice and flee on the trail that McMurphy blazes for them. In his conquest of the Shadow, he has provided the men a rite of passage into personal power and individuation that they obviously skipped in the normal course of development.

Ratched’s “tyrant-like” personality is no longer powerful in the institution. The manipulative behavior of the Nurse is finally defeated and all of the victims are now powerful and willing to fight against her power. Due to Nurse Ratched using her manipulative skills allowing McMurphy to attack her, he is then sent to Disturbed and receives a lobotomy. Several patients check themselves out of the institution before McMurphy even arrives back at the ward. Once he finally returns, his friends do not believe that the lobotomized individual is in fact McMurphy.

“One flew over the Cuckoo’s nest” is a film directed by Miloš Forman, based on the novel by Ken Kesey. The Film was released in 1975. It is the story of a convicted man, trying to outsmart the American legal system by playing mentally ill. The film starts at the beginning when the main character, Randle McMurphy, enters the mental institution. It won 6 Golden Globes as well as 5 Oscars and many other nominations. What separates this film from others is its’ use of movie devices and techniques, as well as the emotionally charged story.

This reveals that after constant manipulation the victims brain is traumatized and is left with an ability to find change. Lastly, most men in the ward find Nurse Ratched to be scary and something to be reckoned with. The fear of Nurse Ratched causes the men to see most women as scary monsters and something to be hated. For example Harding is revealed to have many problems with his wife. “Touch upon the—subject, Mr. McMurry, the subject of Mr. Harding’s problem with his wife” (Kesey, 436).

In contrast, Big Nurse is an authoritarian, she is always stoic and contrasts by McMurphy’s big persona. The

Through the story he transforms into a man who finally realises his own physical and mental power and uses it to prove his worth to himself and society. During the ending scene where the Chief noticeably breaks free from the Big Nurse and her machinery, Kesey is proving the importance of freedom and the possibility for people to overcome what defeats them. McMurphy is a pivotal character within the novel, as his journey through destruction as he receives a number of electro shock therapies makes patients aware that lives can be changed and deteriorate no matter how big you appear to be or where you sit in society. There are clear signs of change in the Chief’s perceptions on McMurphy’s power also as he sees past his tough appearances and understands how much the EST is effecting his mind and body, he watches McMurphy go from a religious image upon the EST table to watching him lose his pattern of memory and fall under the rest of acutes who because of his influence begin to understand their

“ I didn’t think the nurse had the say-so on this kind of thing”. “She does indeed” ( Kesey, pg 191). So, McMurphy understands that nurse Ratched has a say in when he can leave the ward. After learning this he becomes quiet and nice towards nurse Ratched. But before learning that she had say in when he could get out he used to go against her orders and laws.

In the novel, McMurphy attacks the nurse brutally and attempts to kill her, “doctors and supervisors and nurses prying those heavy red fingers out of the white flesh of her throat as if they were her neck bones, jerking him backward” (Kesey 319). Also, the narrator shows mercy towards McMurphy by smothering him in his sleep, “and scissor the kicking legs with mine while I mashed the pillow into the face. I lay there on top of the body for what seemed days. Until the thrashing stopped” (323).

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. While the Big Nurse may look flawless, her porcelain exterior is a mask to her true personality. Her appearance indicates a polished, helpful treatment for incoming patients, but this twisted perfection

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.