In Ken Kesey's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, a psychiatric ward becomes a metaphor for the oppressive nature of American society. This symbolic novel is a clear example of the struggle of the individual battling with the power structures of society. However, it represents much more than a classic case of "man versus the establishment". The questions raised by Kesey are almost as chilling as his descriptive tale of inmate abuse. Kesey compels us to think about just how thin the line is that separates sanity from insanity, treatment from control, as well as the similarity of a psychiatric ward to the rest of society. Representing a heroic struggle of personality against an institution of mindless conformity makes One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest a truly powerful and absorbing piece of literature.

On a broad scale, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (OFOTCN) could be thought of as the classic case of good versus evil. The patients evoke warm, human emotions while the hospital workers are portrayed as cruel and c

Although OFOTCN can be constructed as a parable pitting the counterculture (McMurphy) against the establishment (Nurse Ratched), to view the novel in these terms would be too simplistic. The social criticism of the events in the novel in general involves the idea that the institution is a microcosm for the rest of society, with Kesey making explicit connections between the institution and other societal organizations. For example, the mental institution is meant to repair damage done by churches, schools and families, yet it still operates under the same conditions as these organizations and thus offers the same problems.

We can therefore see, from these small examples, just how similar the psychiatric ward is in respect to society. I believe it to be the reason for interesting the reader to a fuller extent. This representation provides us, the readers, with a realistic storyline, making it a great deal easier to be able to relate with characters such as McMurphy.

However, if McMurphy is a challenge to the establishment, he nevertheless attempts to work within it. His request to have the music volume lowered is rational and diplomatic, while his counterproposal to open the tub room as a game room for the patients is also a viable option. Nevertheless, Nurse Ratched is less interested in working with McMurphy than in demonstrating her dominance over him. Her interest is not in the patients, but rather in perpetuating her own sense of control, as shown by her apparent dislike of any idea that is not her own. It is only when McMurphy finds his proposals will be immediately dismissed that he manipulates the system by using Dr. Spivey, but even in this case he uses the established systems, however instrumentally for his own ends, instead of challenging it.

OFOTCN can also be thought of as a battle between the individual and the power structures of society. In this case, McMurphy represents the rebellious faction of society that was so loudly expressing itself during the sixties and seventies. He, like the hippies, challen

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Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)