One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Journal 4

            One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest ends with Chief Bromden killing McMurphy and escaping from the ward. There had been foreshadowing earlier in the book hinting that Bromden would run away from the hospital, so it did not surprise me. However, I had never expected that he would kill McMurphy. I had actually expected them to breakout together. Chief’s motivations are very clear though. McMurphy’s actions lead to the suicides of two of the patients. He also tries to choke the Big Nurse. Chief leaves because he killed McMurphy and tries to get as far away as possible. However, he decides to visit his home town first. This is surprising because I figure that no one could possibly remember him considering how many years he has been in the hospital. I feel that this is an appropriate ending, however. It was rather predictable that Bromden would leave the hospital, but the other events were surprising. Both Chief Bromden's captivity and McMurphy's life ended in the conclusion. This brought about a sense of satisfaction that what needed to be done had been done. Furthermore, I skimmed through the book again and found that there are actually many instances when McMurphy shows signs of being inwardly malevolent. One good example is on the boat, when McMurphy clearly has no intention of giving his life jacket to anyone, even his girlfriend. I thoroughly enjoyed this book for the entire time I was reading it. Ken Kesey does a wonderful job of developing characters and creating and utilizing an interesting plot and setting. Hopefully, I will have the chance to read some of his other works in the future. I also want to find books with similar topics and characters. I would definitely recommend this book to others to read for schoolwork or even just for fun. It was truly a pleasurable experience.