Setting in One Flew over the Cuckoos Nest Essay - 688 Words

Ken Keseys One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest is a unique fiction novel about oppression and rebellion in an American 1950s Mental Hospital. In this highly distinctive novel, setting definitely refers to the interior, the interiors of the Institution. It also refers to the period this novel this was set in, the 50s, 60s where McCarthyism was dominant. Furthermore, it has great symbolic value, representing issues such as the American struggle of freedom and conformity. This essay shall discuss the ‘setting its significance towards Ken Keseys One Flew over the Cuckoos Nest. In the novel, setting is important towards the interiors, as the vast majority of the novel is set within the closed, confined space, the interior, of the†¦show more content†¦Also, any person who unpatriotically supported communism was harshly dealt with. These events were represented in an exact scale model of the Mental Institution. Anyone who dared to cause an uproar was humiliated in group therapy sessions, or given Electroshock Therapy, or in extreme cases such as McMurphy, lobotomy. In the hospital, McMurphy represented the rebel, the opposer to the Combine (McCarthyism), the one who wanted to break free of societys conformity. Setting is also important, as it refers to the period this book was set in, the 1950s. Ultimately, it is a reflection of what was happening in American society at the time, and what American society expected from each other. McCarthyism, as started by Senator Joseph McCarthy, was the most prevalent movement of the 1950s, where there was great momentum for anti-communism and the suppression of the Anti-communist party. Freedom of speech was suppressed, just like speech and actions were inside the hospital. Here, the Combine and Nurse Ratched act like the McCarthy representatives, where the patients are seen as members of the public, having their every word and movement under close scrutiny. Kesey has also given this novel great Symbolic value. As an opposer to the McCarthy scheme, he has used the mental hospital as a scale model of how society breaks free of societys conformity. McMurphy acts as the ‘liberator, or rebel of the wards excessively strict conformity. He saves the patients from theShow MoreRelatedOne Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest Literary Analysis1003 Words   |  5 PagesFreedom can be obtained through the defiance of society’s expectations to find a sense of individuality. Ken Kesey’s ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ is a novel originally published in 1962, which centres on the lives of patients in a psychiatric hospital. Symbolism, one of the many techniques, was incorporated into the novel, to convey the main ideas of freedom, and society versus individual. Motifs and symbols are vaguely different, in a sense that motifs are symbols unique to the novel, whereasRead MoreKen Kesey s One Flew Over The Cuckoo s Nest1629 Words   |  7 PagesKesey’s One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest is a timeless classic. This novel has been subject to analysis through many different literary lenses: feminist, Marxist, and of course, psychoanalytic. One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest provides a plethora of evidence when it comes to using the psychoanalytic lens. The lens in question deals with the teaching of Sigmund Freud. 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In this highly distinctive novel, setting definitely refers to the interior, the interiors of the Institution. It also refers to the period this novel this was set in, the 50’s, 60’s where McCarthyism was dominant. Furthermore, it has great symbolic value, representing issues such as the American struggle of freedom and conformity. This essay shall discussRead MoreOne Flew over the Cuckoo Nest Critical Analysis1633 Words   |  7 Page sOne flew over the cuckoo nestâ€Å"One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest† The film â€Å"One flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest† accurately depicts and presents the various psychological issues, such as the use of psychosurgery, institutionalism inside the psychiatric hospital and the medical and societal attitudes towards patients during the 1960s. Set in 1963, the film uses characters – patients and authority figures alike – and setting to accurately depict various aspects of psychological treatments, theories and conceptsRead More One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest Essay864 Words   |  4 PagesOne Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest Written by Ken Kesey, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was published in 1967 by Penguin Books. This story was written based on the author’s experience while working in a mental institution. He held long conversations with the inmates in order to gain a better understanding of them. It was during this period that he wrote the first draft of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Most of the characters in the novel are based upon actual patients he met while working atRead MoreOne Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest1650 Words   |  7 PagesName: Reyes, Ashley Period: 6 SHORT FORM – OUTSIDE READING TITLE: One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest AUTHOR: Ken Kesey MAIN CHARACTERS (a clear, concise description of each character- one paragraph each): CHIEF BROMDEN: He is the narrator of the novel and has been in the mental hospital longer than anyone else. He feels as though he has lost himself ever since he was placed into the mental hospital for his illusions and his mental instability. He often just quietly observes everyone in the wordRead MoreOne Flew Over The Cuckoo s Nest1765 Words   |  8 Pages A novel based off of a nursery rhyme must be peaceful and cheerful right? Not according to Ken Kesey. In his kaleidoscopic novel, One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Kesey introduces the reader to a plethora of kooky, loony, and downright absurd situations, all the while being set in a mental hospital in the 1960’s. Kesey adventures in experimenting with elements of an entirely new literary time period, Post-Modernism. By using an overabundance of tones that, to the ordinary author, would be insaneRead More one flew over the cucoos nest Essays1006 Words   |  5 Pages ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST Q3 One of the main themes throughout the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is ‘societal repression over the individual’. The book is written by Ken Kesey and based around patients’ lives within a mental institution. Kesey uses the novel to voice his opinion concerning the oppressive nature of control those who enforce the control. Such a repressive feeling is amplified by the setting of the institution, the patients and Kesey’s tone throughout the novel. TheRead MoreLend Me a Tenor and One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest812 Words   |  3 Pages Two productions that I had enjoyed seeing very much were Lend Me a Tenor and One Flew over the Cuckoos Nest. Both of these productions were great and had very great storyline and I really enjoyed both of these productions. Each production had great actors and each portrayed their character very well, by using many of the aspects of the six elements of theatre that Aristotle used to explain the aesthetics of theatre. Each of these productions had very interesting characters and also had great plots