This movie demonstrates much of what I despise about my fellow feeble-minded Americans. In this movie, I saw stereotypes galore, and almost every cliche in the book. For example, one voluntary patient is seeking therapy for his marital problems. It seems that he and his wife were having "sexual" problems. This ultimately leads everyone, patients and viewers alike, to believe that this man must be gay. As if this weren't enough, we have to have the "blind-deaf-and-dumb-guy", and of course, he's not exactly white.

The central character in this drama is Randal McMurphy. Mac is a new patient at the mental institution. He was transferred from a nearby prison. He seems to have been committed not for mental illness but because he is resistant to authority. In the past he has been arrested for such things as assault and statutory rape. He may be a criminal, and he may deserve to be in jail, but he is not insane. He was just too much work for the prison guards "cause I don't sit there like a goddamn vegetable" he says. I believe the only dangerous thing about Mac is his desire to fight authority, and I believe the danger is only for the autho

rity figures. He may not go about his struggle in a lawful manner, but I do believe he has some good, sane ideas and beliefs which he tries to maintain in all of his situations. For example, in jail, he didn't feel it was right for the authorities to demand he act as a "vegetable" and I agree with him. In the institution, he felt that decisions should be made democratically and fairly, and he fought for this belief, which inevitably lead to punishment by ECT .

In my opinion, Nurse Ratched flew over the cuckoo's nest. She is the perhaps the "mother bird" watching out for the patients in the hospital, flying around while protecting their mental state of mind, in her own way.

The infamous Nurse Ratched is the head nurse on this floor. She leads the therapy sessions and attempts to maintain order of her patients. She always uses a calm and rational tone of voice and claims to know what is best for all of her patients. The audience is lead to believe that she has some ulterior motives for her decisions when she requests that Mac stay in the ward during a review of his mental status. It is apparent to all at this point that there is nothing mentally wrong with Mac, though she decides he needs to stay. Perhaps this decision was made out of spite for his disruptive behavior. I do feel that she is dangerous. She has the power to keep a sane man in a mental institution and rule over his life for as long as she desires-this is very dangerous.

Another influential character in this movie is Billy. Billy has some obvious self-esteem issues. I feel the portion of the film that we viewed in class only touches on his true character. Billy has a very obvious speech impediment, which seems to make him reluctant in many ways. He is the character that follows orders without question. He is threatened by Mac in many ways, but excited by his ideas at the same time. Mac's presence in the institution disrupts the routine that Billy has functioned so well under for so long. It is possible that his naivety could be a dangerous attribute

Some common words found in the essay are:
Nurse Ratched, Billy Billy, McMurphy Mac, Cuckoo's Nest, Galileo Normality, nurse ratched, mental illness, flew cuckoo's, flew cuckoo's nest, brain chemistry, mental institution, behavior necessarily, billy obvious, ideas contrary, talking therapy, patients involved,
Approximate Word count = 1382
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)