One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Literature & Language Essay

ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST
CHAPTER TWO
1 On p. 15 Chief describes what the black orderlies do when a patient is admitted to the hospital. Explain.
According the Chief, the Black Orderlies (about three) forcefully slide the patient towards the shower, strip him of his clothes, and run a thermometer towards him. This seems to be the regular protocol for “sanitizing” or “disinfecting” the patients before they are admitted.
2 When McMurphy arrives, his first words to the orderlies are that “he’s pretty damn clean, thank you.” What impressions do you have of him from this? How does he compare to other first-time admittants?
When Chief Bromden watched the orderlies admitted McMurphy he realized that the latter is not the same as those people who are there with him in the Mental institution. Even though he was not yet sure as to the ‘sanity’ of McMurphy, he knew this since as compared to the others, most of the patients would either be filthy or scared of the orderlies and the shower.
3 What is Chief’s impression of McMurphy?
The Chief’s impression of McMurphy even as early as the time when he joined them in their card game was that the latter is lucid. It was clear to the Chief that McMurphy had the proper state of mind as he was able to manipulate with ease, other patients such as Billy Bibbit.
4 Why is McMurphy in the hospital in the first place?
McMurphy was in the hospital due to a crime that he committed in the farm. However, during the time when he was detained at the prison work farm the court has labeled him as a psychopath that needs mental health treatment rather than being detained in the prison.
CHAPTER THREE
1 Describe what happens to Ruckly.
Ruckly is one of the minor characters in the story. It seems that he was previously an ‘acute’, yet a botched lobotomy has made him a ‘chronic’. The story showed how the grisly surgical procedure had made Ruckly reach a tipping point that changed his life forever.
2 What’s the difference between the Acutes and the Chronics? Why do the Acutes keep to their side?
On the one hand, the Chronics are those patients in the mental institution that are shown to be incurable. They are further divided into the walkers, wheelers, and the vegetables with the last being those who seem to be “brain dead”. On the other hand, the Acutes are those who are curable. They...