Passage One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest

Analysis of pages 171-172

Context:

This is the scene on page 171-beginning 172 in which McMurphy breaks the glass of the Nurses station after the Nurse takes away the tub room in a meeting.

Themes:

Themes that are present in this passage are mainly Control and Oppression, but also Living vs. Apathy, Perspective vs. Perspective,and possibly Be a Man or Sanity vs. Insanity .

Motifs:

Motifs in the passage are big vs. small, gambling, machinery and also cigarettes.

Main Themes and Characters:

Control and Oppression is the driving/main theme in the passage, since:

• scene serves as the major confrontation of the Nurse and McMurphy
• The Nurse, playing a rigged game, wants to exert her power and show fully that she is in control by taking away the tube room, indirectly expecting to win over McMurphy
• She does this especially through the use of language: her tone is condescending and patronizing, and her diction is sophisticated (syntax simple to be understood by Acutes) to show her powerful position and control over the entire ward.

"We must take away a privilege. And after careful consideration of the circumstances of this rebellion, we've decided that there would be a certain justice in taking away the privilege of the tub room that you men have been using for your card games during the day. Does this seem unfair?"

• Through the use of this rhetoric question at the end, she addresses especially McMurphy but also all other Acutes, and makes it clear that she holds the power in the ward. The fact that she doesn’t look at McMurphy after saying this also emphasizes how sure she is of her being in control.

• McMurphy's reaction seems accepting, but through sensory imagery explained by the Chief, it is clear that he believes he is in control.
• calm tone "So, if there is no discussion on this ruling, I think the hour is almost over…"

Motif big vs. small

• McMurphy explained as "big" through figurative and sensory language ( imagery): "he's big as a house", "he said in his slowest, deepest drawl", "the iron on his boot heels cracked lightning out of the tile. He was the logger again, the swaggering gambler(motif of gambler), the big redheaded brawling Irishmen, the cowboy…"(simile, metaphor, description of McMurphy's action)
• Shows complete disregard for Nurses punishment through his behavior, as if he accepted it- won't loose his face "He stretched and yawned and scratched his nose and started strolling across the day room…"
• McMurphy breaks window for 'cigarettes'= freedom from oppression (and BIG PICTURE from Combine)

Structure:

• At first, Nurse talks, Nurses actions described, but slowly view turns on McMurphy and his behaviour and action (shift of view from Chief Nurse to McM)
• Scene shows through structure how Nurse seems in control at first, but slowly loses control to McMurphy, who breaks her window at the end

Theme Living vs. Apathy is a secondary theme, shown through observations of Chief

• Chief and Acutes are the 'apathetical': "I could see it was too late to keep him from doing whatever fool thing he had in mind, and I just watched like everybody else"
• Chief passive, only hears machinery/noises after Nurses punishment- serves motif of machinery (like warning, danger)
• McMurphy is the only one fighting oppression of the Nurse, which makes him the 'living': "But one by one everybody else looked at him sitting there in his corner." (everyone expects him to act -on behalf of them)
• "faces turned to him, full of naked, scared hope" (need McMurphy to resist, otherwise apathetical!)