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 th

Along with medication, the patients in this ward are undergoing a sort of talking therapy. It is lead by Nurse Ratched. Only certain patients are involved, primarily the less severe patients. Several patients assemble themselves in a semi-circle at the beginning of the session. They may begin where they had left off during a previous session, or they may start with a new issue. I am not sure if this type of therapy is used widely. I understand the benefits of group therapy, but perhaps in this situation a more individual-based therapy should be utilized due in part to the observed reactions of other members of the group to certain topics of discussion. I would assume that this film took place in the middle to late seventies. This talking therapy in reality has no apparent affect on the more severe or chronic mentally ill patients because they are not even involved in these sessions. Nurse Ratched demonstrates a very calm attitude toward the patients, however, I don't agree with her idea of democracy and fairness. I don't necessarily believe that her technique of therapy is beneficial to all or any of the patients. I might change my mind if she changes her method of therapy, however.

ECT was used in this film as a punishment for intolerable behavior, not necessarily as a means to correct a clinical problem. The problem that ECT was attempting to correct in this situation was unruliness. This method was used to silence views disliked by the staff, in particular, Mac's views. I understand that now ECT is used at much lower frequencies for shorter amounts of time because of the ethical considerations involved but not considered during the period covered by this film.

In my opinion, mental illness involves a chemical imbalance in brain chemistry which creates delusions in an individual. I would also classify disorder-related illness under the category of mental illness. Insanity is not necessarily an illness in my book. The word insane has often been used to describe people with

Some common words found in the essay are:
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