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| Plot Summary of One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest |
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"Told from the viewpoint of a mentally troubled and supposedly deaf and dumb half-Indian,"One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest" depicts the atrocious state of affairs in a state-run mental institution circa 1960. The patients of the institution are a hodge-podge of mental deviants whose lives are terrorized on a daily basis by the head nurse of the unit on which they dwell. She is a despicable creature named Nurse Ratched, a domineering, evil woman who wants to dictate every facet of their lives. Their outlook is bleak until a free-spirited new patient, a coarse, obscene Irishman named McMurphy arrives and embarks on a crusade to restore a little dignity to their lives. What befalls him along the way is nothing less than a tragedy. A great book!"
Bill Brumlow, Resident Scholar
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"This absolutely wonderful novel takes readers on a tour of a 1950's mental hospital, through the eyes and mind of a perennial patient at that mental hospital. With delicately placed, poignant humor and mountains of pathos, the novel's burly, Irish-American protagonist, McMurphy, struggles with those supervising him and the other mistreated patients in the facility. The protagonist's struggle ultimately transcends a medical practicioner vs. patient level and becomes a tooth-and-nail fight for McMurphy's honor and even his mind. "
Richard Brear, M.A., Resident Scholar
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"To escape confinement in jail, Randall P. McMurphy feigns insanity. He thinks that completing his sentence in the comparatively freer environment of a state mental institution will be easier, if not much more pleasant. However, he has not counted upon “Big Nurse” Ratchet and her sadistic orderlies. When McMurphy, to counter the daily boredom of the institution's routine, becomes a leader among the ambulatory mental patients and challenges Nurse Ratchet's authority, he sets himself up for a long battle of escalating intensity that leads to his eventual downfall. However, McMurphy's indomitable will, love for liberty, and courageous rebellion against the tyranny of an arbitrary and abusive authority inspires “Big Chief” Bromden to escape from the institution and start a new life."
Gary L. Pullman, Resident Scholar
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"This story is told from the perspective of a massive Red Indian in a mental institution in the USA. He pretends to be deaf and dumb to avoid interaction with the staff, but speaks again to the new arrival, McMurphy. McMurphy starts a battle of wills with the head nurse of the ward. She is obsessed with controlling the ward and its inmates, and this grates with McMurphy's free spirit. The book was written in the 60's and deals with society forcing people to conform. "
John Samson, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- thoughtful
Time/era of story
- 1960's-1970's
Life of a profession:
- mental patient
Internal struggle/realization?
Yes
Struggle over
- vague finding self/purpose in life (i.e. no plot to book)
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Battle with a psychiatrist
Yes
Job/Profession/Status story
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- accused criminal
Age:
- 20's-30's
Eccentric/Mental
Yes
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Female
Age:
- 40's-50's
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- an above average amount
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
- mean, arrogant
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 5 ()
United States
Yes
The US:
- Pacific NW
Style
Person
- mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death?
- moderately detailed references to deaths
Sex in book?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- vague references
Lot of foul language?
Yes
Unusual Style:
- a lot of stream of consciousness
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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