A Change in Ward Policy
In the novel, “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” by Ken Kesey, the protagonist, Randall Patrick McMurphy, demonstrates a quest of redemptive sacrifice in order to protect the patient 's in the psych ward from the antagonist, Nurse Ratched. Through McMurphy’s heroic endeavors such as attempting to change ward policy, he is able to establish his own identity and fulfill his destiny.
McMurphy is the essence of what a leader should be. From the beginning the reader is made aware that he is an explosive energy that can liven up any atmosphere. He is a red-headed, Irishman that has a short temper and self acclaimed “gambling fool” (12). He is admitted to the ward for a series of questionable activities such as earning a “...dishonorable discharge, afterward, for insubordination. Followed by a history of street brawls and barroom fights and a series of arrests for Drunkenness, Assault and Battery, Disturbing the Peace, repeated gambling, and one arrest — for Rape,” (46). Upon entering the ward, the patient 's experience a completely different vibe from McMurphy’s appearance. …show more content…
She declines, but McMurphy does not take no for an answer. He sits in front of the tv and narrates a baseball game. The hype spreads across the room and all the patient 's join in, finally feeling a sense of excitement like everything he was saying was real. By then, “[Nurse Ratched] saw that McMurphy was growing bigger than ever...growing almost into a legend,” (133). With constant pressure and persistence, McMurphy keeps pushing the limits. He organizes a fishing trip for the men to go on. This trip gets the men opened to new experiences and feelings of rebellion. They have a party, get drunk and find out that all they need is “the guts” (263) to leave. Once the men are caught partying with prostitutes, Nurse Ratched fires back and sends McMurphy to the Disturbed
In the novel, “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” by Ken Kesey, the protagonist, Randall Patrick McMurphy, demonstrates a quest of redemptive sacrifice in order to protect the patient 's in the psych ward from the antagonist, Nurse Ratched. Through McMurphy’s heroic endeavors such as attempting to change ward policy, he is able to establish his own identity and fulfill his destiny.
McMurphy is the essence of what a leader should be. From the beginning the reader is made aware that he is an explosive energy that can liven up any atmosphere. He is a red-headed, Irishman that has a short temper and self acclaimed “gambling fool” (12). He is admitted to the ward for a series of questionable activities such as earning a “...dishonorable discharge, afterward, for insubordination. Followed by a history of street brawls and barroom fights and a series of arrests for Drunkenness, Assault and Battery, Disturbing the Peace, repeated gambling, and one arrest — for Rape,” (46). Upon entering the ward, the patient 's experience a completely different vibe from McMurphy’s appearance. …show more content…
She declines, but McMurphy does not take no for an answer. He sits in front of the tv and narrates a baseball game. The hype spreads across the room and all the patient 's join in, finally feeling a sense of excitement like everything he was saying was real. By then, “[Nurse Ratched] saw that McMurphy was growing bigger than ever...growing almost into a legend,” (133). With constant pressure and persistence, McMurphy keeps pushing the limits. He organizes a fishing trip for the men to go on. This trip gets the men opened to new experiences and feelings of rebellion. They have a party, get drunk and find out that all they need is “the guts” (263) to leave. Once the men are caught partying with prostitutes, Nurse Ratched fires back and sends McMurphy to the Disturbed