Society In One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest

In this book written by Ken Kesey, the main character is a man named R.P. McMurphy who tricks people into thinking that he is a psychopath. To McMurphy, the asylum is a get out of jail free card, which quickly turns out to be something else entirely. However, one vital aspect of this book is the way in which it addresses and provides insight upon several contemporary issues relating to the American healthcare system, by illustrating the ways in which our modern healthcare system has improved and grown in the last five decades. This includes the following areas of healthcare: the need for a healthcare reform, the lack of healthy doctor-patient relationships, and the murky definition of mental illness.

The 1960’s was a period of great dissatisfaction from people who felt their rights were being violated. Millions of Americans, young and old, black and white, came together to fight against racial discrimination and protest the Vietnam War. The government suppressed the southern black population the right to vote, while sponsoring a war in Vietnam that was widely unpopular. Reflecting the anti-establishment movements of the 1960’s, Ken Kesey wrote One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. It has since become an American classic for its themes of rebellion and nonconformity against an over controlling authority that does not respect individualism and humanity.

“A success, they say, but I say he’s just another robot for the Combine and might be better off as a failure…”(17).

Allen’s Difference Matters book she explains the importance of labeling. “What a group is called and how it is described by other groups, particularly those in power, plays an important role in social relations, because these labels usually are not neutral”(Brenda J. Allen). People make labels that either have positive or a negative connotation. People establish positive labels on one another in order to reiterate their own social identities. For example, if a person meets someone who has the same qualities or ideologies as them, they might label that person as cool. People meet other people in order to find themselves. People unintentionally look for other people with the same ideologies. If that person finds somebody with those same ideologies that are just like theirs, then that’s where the positive connotation originates from. Negative labels come from people who interact with other people who have different ideologies than them. “Most often, dominant groups define these names/labels to establish and maintain hierarchy” (Allen 27). When people make those negative labels they do that in order to gain power over the people or group that are different from

Ken Kesey’s “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” is a unique fiction novel about oppression and rebellion in an American 1950’s Mental Hospital. In this highly distinctive novel, setting definitely refers to the interior, the interiors of the Institution. It also refers to the period this novel this was set in, the 50’s, 60’s where McCarthyism was dominant. Furthermore, it has great symbolic value, representing issues such as the American struggle of freedom and conformity. This essay shall discuss the ‘setting’ & its significance towards Ken Kesey’s “One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest”.

Labeling theory holds that individuals come to identify and act as per their labels. The major tenet of this theory is that the behavior and self-identity of individuals is affected by the way they are described by other people (Vold, Bernard, Snipes, & Gerould, 2016). According to this theory, the act of deviance is not implicit in a particular act, but is hedged on the inclination of the majority to ascribe labels to minorities in society who deviate from standard behavior. Labeling leads to dramatization of a particular act – which propagates the behavioral clash between the individual and the community. Through ascribing labels, the individuals acquire a negative self-image. The individuals accept themselves as labeled by the

Ken Kesey's "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" is a unique fiction novel about oppression and rebellion in an American 1950's Mental Hospital. In this highly distinctive novel, setting definitely refers to the interior, the interiors of the Institution. It also refers to the period this novel this was set in, the 50's, 60's where McCarthyism was dominant. Furthermore, it has great symbolic value, representing issues such as the American struggle of freedom and conformity. This essay shall discuss the ‘setting' & its significance towards Ken Kesey's "One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest".

When a person's social situation is changed, it may also change his or her self-image. His or her self-image is so affected by labeling that it becomes precisely the same as the identity imputed to him or her (Knutsson, 1977). A great example of this theory in effect can be seen in the movie the Stanford Prison Experiment. Zimbardo, the psychologist in charge of the experiment, hypothesized that inherent traits are what cause so much violence in prison settings. This goes back to the dispositional or situational argument, inherent traits being the general disposition or characteristics that a person was born with. To his surprise, the experiment did not give him the results he was expecting. Instead, he found that each group adapted to the stereotypical behaviors that go along with the identity that they have each been given. The “prison guards” did not take long to conform to the expected characteristics associated with being a prison guard which include enforcing strict rules, and punishing the prisoners with disciplines such as push ups, jumping jacks, or menial tasks such as cleaning the toilets with their bare hands, when they do not obey these rules. The labeling theory may have also resulted in deindividuation, especially with the guards. This is the state when one becomes so immersed in the norms of the group that one are put in, one loses their sense of identity. The guards may have been so sadistic because they did not feel what they did was down to them personally, but it was a group norm (McLeod, 2017). The prisoners, however, were also quick to conform to the deviant and criminal-like behaviors associated with being a prisoner. On the second day of the experiment a rebellion arose within the prisoners. As the prison guards came to wake up the prisoners for the 10 o’clock count, they were met with the

Members of society feel at peace knowing that their mentally disturbed are receiving ‘proper’ treatment, but when treatment entails electroshock therapy and lobotomies, how does one protest when they are unaware of this malpractice? In the 1960s novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, the lives of psychiatric ward members are changed forever when introduced to Randall McMurphy. While he claims to be insane, what separates him from the others are the means of comitance; Randall pleaded insanity to avoid a difficult jail sentence while the others more or less committed themselves. His confidence is a never before seen attribute in the ward that inspires the other patients to break out of their comfort zone to not only speak up for themselves against the overbearing head Nurse, but to embrace their masculinity and take power of their own lives. In Ken Kesey’s fiction novel, patients in a psychiatric ward are under the cruel regiment of Nurse Ratched when the introduction of new patient Randall McMurphy challenges her control to revealing themes of conformity, technological influence, and confidence.

Conformity has been the target of many works of literature even before Holden Caulfield from Catcher in the Rye spewed angst about everyone around him being a “phony.” To many people, there are forces in the social order that shape others to fit a certain mold, and one who does not fit the mold will be considered an outcast by society. During the 1960’s, rebellion was a shared act among the majority, including authors and artists; this was due to the conflict in the East as well as the Civil Rights movement. To these people, the government was a criminal, even a machine perhaps, which threatened one’s individuality. This provides some historical context on the background of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Ken Kesey, the author, worked in

Psychological fiction and drama, “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”, written by Ken Kesey, utilizes dynamic, round characters, a distinct setting, and mature themes to create a compelling, complex story that takes readers through a psychological exploration of an asylum system. With a Lexile measure of 1040, this work of fiction begins its tale with the arrival of a swaggering, boisterous and rebellious character named Randle McMurphy at a mental ward. A walking, influential symbol of freedom in a controlling and repressive society, he repeatedly defies authority, encouraging the other patients to join in challenging the boundaries and starting a war with the iron-fisted Big Nurse, Ms. Ratched, and ultimately leading the power struggle to a shocking end. Through rich symbolism and vulgar yet honest dialogue, challenges faced by being unable to deal with modern industrial society are insightfully and brilliantly communicated, making it a crime to not recommend this classic as a must read.

We feel that One Flew over the Cuckoo’s nest is filled with many psychological connotations. This movie is set in a mental hospital where McMurphy was admitted to be psychologically evaluated because of violent behavior. Upon his arrival McMurphy noticed that the patients were very robot-like in their actions. The hospital is extremely structured where the patient’s daily life was monotonous. We will discuss the various connotations by answering the following questions that have been asked.

Few people are going to openly admit to being prejudice against people of other races, gender, and religions. However that doesn’t stop many of us from having unintentional racist thoughts. In 1979, Henri Tajfel, a social psychologist, proposed that “the groups which people belonged to are an important source of pride and self-esteem. Groups give us a sense of social identity: a sense of belonging to the social world.” This ideal of categorizing and subconsciously labeling ourselves is better known as “Social Identity Theory”. Tajfel continues by saying “In order to increase our self-image we enhance the status of the group to which we belong. For example, England is the best country in the world! We can also increase our self-image by discriminating and holding prejudice views against the out group (the group we don’t belong to). For example, the Americans, French etc. are a bunch of losers! Therefore, we divided the world into “them” and “us” based through a process of social categorization (i.e. we put people into social groups). This is known as in-group (us) and out-group (them). Social identity theory states that the in-group will discriminate against the out-group to enhance their self-image.” We all unintentionally discriminate against others that are in the “out-group”, and by doing this we are excluding ourselves from certain religions, cultures, races, and even genders. This ideal of labeling ourselves can be traced back to childhood and factors such as where we

When people put a label on a group of people in a society, the people in the labeled group become to attach themselves to that label and then play their role in that label. This can be positive for the upper classes, however, for the underclass it has devastating effects. Not only are the underclass labeled, there have no choice in the matter. If they have some of the characteristics, for

“People don't want other people to get high, because if you get high, you might see the falsity of the fabric of the society we live in.” This quote by Ken Kesey embodies his view of society in the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s nest. He depicts the modern society through Nurse Ratched, a strong authoritarian figure, that embellishes the nature of society. Nurse Ratched is notorious in her endeavors to control the men and uses her power to regulate the men. In this domain the beams of society cause the men to shrink from individual freedom that is reawakened with McMurphy, who teaches the men to be bold in the face of society. In Kesey’s work he highlights several major ideas about society. He illustrates the repressive nature of society that causes men to conform to boundaries. Further, he depicts how society rejects those who are deemed defective in the system. Lastly, he also illustrates how society is a major cause of shame and indignity. Thus, Kensey delineates the nature of society as being repressive, selective, and a cause of diffidence.