Mr. Palmer
Honors 11
Book Report Quarter 4
2015 March 28
Randle McMurphy is the protagonist in One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest. He sees himself as the person who can save the rest of the men from the horrors of the mental institution in which they are stuck. McMurphy is a significant character because he acts as a leader among the men in the mental institution. As the novel progresses, he begins to rebel more and more against Nurse Ratched, and the way she rules the institution. When all the other men are too afraid to stand up to Nurse Ratched, McMurphy takes the lead in going against the way the she runs the institution. Although McMurphy and Nurse Ratched are very different in several ways, they are also similar due to the fact that …show more content…
He saves them from the monotonous life that they live in the hospital. He drives Nurse Ratched crazy and makes her lose a bet she made with him. Also, when he goes to get electroshock treatment, he willingly lays on the cross-shaped table and does not complain. At the end of the novel, McMurphy is lobotomized and killed, similar to Christ who laid His life down. McMurphy saves the patients and that is why he is seen as Christ in this novel. Nurse Ratched is the head nurse in the mental institution. She rules over the hospital with an iron fist. Nurse Ratched has strict rules, and a schedule that is not meant to be broken. If the schedule is ever broken, she will give the men electroshock treatment. The men despise of this, and they start to develop a hatred toward Nurse Ratched. At the beginning of the novel, she has the ultimate power over the men in the institution, but as the story progresses, the men begin to challenge her rule over them. This causes her power to dwindle, and the men begin to challenge her …show more content…
As soon as McMurphy enters the mental hospital, things start to change. Before McMurphy had arrived, the men had no say in what went on in their lives at the institution. McMurphy leads the men against the rule of Nurse Ratched, and rebels against her evil ways. McMurphy leads the way when he wants to brush his teeth earlier than the schedule allows, he brushes his teeth with soap instead of waiting to use toothpaste. This enrages Nurse Ratched and she feels that her power is being threatened by McMurphy. Although McMurphy and Nurse Ratched are very different, they are also similar in the way that they will do whatever it takes to get their