One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest Journal 1

            I am reading One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey. The main character, Chief Bromden, is a patient in a mental hospital that is run by Nurse Ratched. The Big Nurse, as the patients call her, is obsessed with having complete control over the ward and its inhabitants. Randle McMurphy, a former hustler and conman, soon transfers into the hospital from a prison. He causes trouble for the Nurse and the aides. However, interactions between characters and the inner monologue of Bromden seem to be more important than the story itself. There are many sections of the book that do not move the plot forward, such as when Chief Bromden goes on and on about the “Combine” and his other delusions. The Combine is like a part of the government that seeks to control everyone’s thoughts and actions by installing devices into their brains. The most important quote in the beginning of the book (and maybe even the entire story) is the last sentence in chapter one when the narrator, Bromden, says “It’s still hard for me to have a clear mind thinking on it. But it’s the truth even if it didn’t happen.” Apparently, the readers cannot trust what they read, which makes sense considering most of the characters are mentally unstable. This quote is demonstrated when Chief talks about how he always sees the ward covered in fog, which the other patients obviously are not able to notice. Bromden does not realize that he is crazy though. He simply believes that the others have been successfully brainwashed by the Combine. So far, I do not really identify with the text. Nevertheless, I do feel sympathy for the characters. I actually decided to read this book because my brother read it for his senior literature class and thoroughly enjoyed it. I am sure that I will like the book as well.