The control panel symbolizes The Combine and the rules of the ward that seem too big to move or change. Chief Bromden is groomed by McMurphy to get his old strength back, and at the book’s end is able to throw the control panel out of the window and escape the ward.
What does McMurphy say about Bromden?
What does the control panel symbolize in The Combine?
What does the control panel mean in the book?
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Why does McMurphy bet he can lift the control panel?
McMurphy asks Bromden if he can move the control panel, as a way of testing how big Bromden has grown. Bromden is able to move it half a foot. McMurphy makes a rigged bet with the other patients that someone could lift the control panel, knowing, of course, that Bromden has already lifted it.
What might McMurphy attempt to lift control panel foreshadowing?
That fact that Chief can lift it reveals that he is regaining his physical confidence, but because he'll lift it as part of McMurphy's attempt to win a bet against the other patients by tricking them foreshadows McMurphy's downfall.
What does McMurphy do to the control panel in the tub room?
There is a control panel in the tub room of the ward that controls the water flow into the bathtubs that were once intended to be used as punishment. This control panel is so heavy that McMurphy cannot lift it. At the end of the novel, Chief not only lifts the control panel, he breaks a window with it to escape.
How much money does McMurphy win from the other patients when he lifts the control panel?
She prompts the group to question McMurphy's motive when she tells them he has won more than $300 from the other patients.
What promise does McMurphy make chief if he agrees to lift the control panel?
Describe the deal McMurphy makes with the Chief. RPM promises to restore Chief Bromden to his original size and to sign him up for the fishing trip, free of charge, if Chief Bromden will lift the control panel in the tub room once he is "blown up" again.
How does McMurphy establish control?
How does McMurphy establish control of the ward? McMurphy establishes control by introducing himself and throwing himself into the crowd. He teaches the patients to gamble and play other card games. He doesn't believe in the big nurse's complete power,so he attempts to disrupt her control.
Does Chief lift the control panel?
Although McMurphy cannot lift it, the Chief is one who can.
How does McMurphy manipulate the system?
Firstly, McMurphy manipulates the system of the mental hospital by using Dr. Spivey, who is unaware of what is happening. Secondly, Nurse Ratched is demonstrating manipulation in the way she convinces and treats the other patients in the ward.
What was McMurphy's mental illness?
“Mac” McMurphy, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest's protagonist, has Anti-Social Personality Disorder, three times more likely in men than women.
Did they shock McMurphy?
McMurphy apologizes to Chief for getting him involved in the fight as the two are led to electroshock therapy.
Why does McMurphy let the men win at cards eventually?
Chief watches McMurphy, who is playing cards with the other guys, try to get them to loosen up and experience freedom through gambling. The patients are really scared, so McMurphy starts to let them win.
How does Nurse Ratched manage to control both the patients on the ward and the people who work there without raising her voice what does she do instead?
By Ken Kesey Nurse Ratched, the novel's antagonist, maintains her power on the ward by manipulating the men's fears and desires. She uses shame to keep them submissive. She manipulates her staff through insinuation and by carefully stoking their hatred.
What does McMurphy attempt to lift in the tub room to throw through the window?
McMurphy bets them that he can lift the cement control panel in the tub room and use it to break through the reinforced windows. Everybody knows it will be impossible to lift the massive panel, but he makes such a sincere effort that for one moment they all believe it is possible.
How does McMurphy manipulate the system?
Firstly, McMurphy manipulates the system of the mental hospital by using Dr. Spivey, who is unaware of what is happening. Secondly, Nurse Ratched is demonstrating manipulation in the way she convinces and treats the other patients in the ward.
What does McMurphy claim he can do in Chapter 11?
Somebody says McMurphy can't lift a steel panel, so the ever-competitive McMurphy bets them that he can.
What is McMurphy's reaction to the electroshock treatment?
Alluding to his stay in a Chinese prison camp in the Korean War, McMurphy refuses to cooperate with Ratched to prevent the electroshock. Emulating the crucifixion, McMurphy lies down on the electroshock table and asks for a crown of thorns.
What might McMurphys attempt to lift the control panel foreshadow ...
The control panel in the tub room will prove significant later in the novel. In this section, McMurphy’s idea of using it to escape foreshadows later events.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest: Symbols | SparkNotes
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One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Symbols | LitCharts
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One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest - SparkNotes
On his first day on the ward, McMurphy explains to the inmates that he is not afraid of what Nurse Ratched could do to him—even send him for electric shock—because he’s not really insane but just chose the hospital over the work farm.
What happens after Randle McMurphy arrives?
After Randle McMurphy arrives, Chief Bromden notices that his laughter is the first genuine laughter he has heard in years . The longer McMurphy is on the ward, the more the men begin to laugh. Laughter… read analysis of Laughter
What is the fog in Chief Bromden?
Fog. Chief Bromden’s hallucinations are dominated by a thick, debilitating fog that only begins to wane with the arrival of Randle McMurphy to the psych ward. Bromden’s sees the world as becoming increasingly mechanized, and describes… read analysis of Fog.
Can Randle McMurphy lift the control panel?
Randle McMurphy makes a bet that he can lift the control panel, an object that is so large and heavy that no one believes he can actually do it—but they are all committed to… read analysis of The Control Panel
Who is Randle McMurphy?
Randle McMurphy is quick to introduce himself as an avid gambler, and tries to find the patient on the ward in charge of gambling and debts. McMurphy uses gambling throughout the book as a way… read analysis of Gambling
Why does Bromden slip away from reality?
When Bromden starts to slip away from reality, because of his medication or out of fear, he hallucinates fog drifting into the ward. He imagines that there are hidden fog machines in the vents and that they are controlled by the staff.
What does the fog mean in Ratched?
Beyond what it means for Bromden, the fog represents the state of mind that Ratched imposes on the patients with her strict, mind-numbing routines and humiliating treatment. When McMurphy arrives, he drags all the patients out of the fog.
What are the McMurphy shorts?
McMurphy’s Boxer Shorts. McMurphy’s boxer shorts are black satin with a pattern of white whales with red eyes. A literature major gave them to him, saying that McMurphy is himself a symbol. The shorts, of course, are also highly symbolic. First, the white whales call to mind Moby-Dick, one of the most potent symbols in American literature.
What does Moby Dick stand for in the book?
Here, the implication is that McMurphy is to Ratched as Moby-Dick is to Ahab. A third interpretation is that Moby-Dick stands for the power of nature, signifying McMurphy’s untamed nature that conflicts with the controlled institution . Also, in Melville’s novel Moby-Dick is associated with God, which resonates with McMurphy’s role as ...
What is an electroshock table?
The electroshock therapy table is explicitly associated with crucifixion. It is shaped like a cross, with straps across the wrists and over the head. Moreover, the table performs a function similar to the public crucifixions of Roman times. Ellis, Ruckly, and Taber—Acutes whose lives were destroyed by electroshock therapy—serve as public examples of what happens to those who rebel against the ruling powers. Ellis makes the reference explicit: he is actually nailed to the wall. This foreshadows that McMurphy, who is associated with Christ images, will be sacrificed.
What are some examples of what happens to those who rebel against the ruling powers?
Ellis, Ruckly, and Taber—Acutes whose lives were destroyed by electroshock therapy— serve as public examples of what happens to those who rebel against the ruling powers. Ellis makes the reference explicit: he is actually nailed to the wall.
What is Moby Dick associated with?
Also, in Melville’s novel Moby-Dick is associated with God , which resonates with McMurphy’s role as a Christ figure. Finally, the whale boxer shorts poke fun at academia and its elaborate interpretations of symbols.
What did Nurse Ratched do to McMurphy?
Consequently, something more drastic had to be done, and Nurse Ratched used her most devious weapon and had McMurphy undergo a lobotomy operation , eventually manipulation him in the end, so he too would conform.
What does Chief Bromden do in the book?
Although out Ken Kesey’s novel, Chief Bromden observes methods of manipulation and how they are put into practice, until finally he can take no more of it and leaves. This is supposed to symbolize McMurphy’s self sacrificial victory over nurse Ratched.
How does Nurse Ratchet manipulate McMurphy?
After this, Nurse Ratchet finally succeeds in manipulating McMurphy, by giving him lobotomy, which makes him a conformed non-opposing vegetable. This ultimately leads to the final victory of the nurse over McMurphy, all through manipulation. In “One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest”, there is many motifs and a theme toward the use of manipulation.
What is manipulation in a novel?
Manipulation is defined as ‘shrewd of devious management. Manipulation is put into context by how the character’s use it. The first character to master it is the antagonist Nurse Ratchet. She uses it to manipulate patients to manage her mechanically structured ward.
What is the use of manipulation in one flew over the cuckoo's nest?
Throughout Ken Kesey’s novel, “One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” the use of manipulation is a re-occurring motif . Manipulation is defined as ‘shrewd of devious management. Manipulation is put into context by how the character’s use it. The first character to master it is the antagonist Nurse Ratchet. She uses it to manipulate patients to manage her mechanically structured ward. The other character is the (antagonist, protagonist? ) patient McMurphy. He on the other hand manipulates people to help them grow or gain money.
Why did George fail to rally the other patients?
He failed to rally the other patients because nobody was on his side. After that he learns to manipulate the patients on their personalities, and how they act. This shows when he is short a person for his fishing trip, and tries manipulate (and succeeds) George to come based on his personality and past employment.
What is the nurse's job in the shock shop?
The nurse sends patients to the shock shop, if they are being ‘bad’, or hostile. Upon further acts of ‘retaliation’, she sends the patient to lobotomy, where a surgery is performed in which a part of the brain is cut out, resulting in a ‘peaceful, cooperative’ patient, but in reality, just a vegetable.
Summary
Bromden refuses to take the little red pill that makes him "paralyzed with sleep." He is soon lost in a terrifying dream in which the dormitory is lowered into the heart of the hospital and surrounded by churning machinery. The air is filled with the sound of a hydroelectric dam.
Analysis
Bromden 's dream underscores his innate belief that the hospital is a giant machine in which faulty robots are discarded or repaired. When Blastic is sliced open, there is no sign of the human that once was. That makes it easier for Public Relation to remove Blastic's head and wear it like a talisman of another job well done.
How does McMurphy lose his battle against Nurse Ratched?
McMurphy ostensibly loses his battle against Nurse Ratched when she orders a lobotomy for him , but the victory is hollow, for she loses control of the ward as the other patients free themselves of her grip and voluntarily leave the hospital. This is an ultimate win for him and an ultimate loss for her. This circumstance also fits well with the Christian symbolism of the novel; although McMurphy dies for his cause, his disciples leave the hospital to live according to his teachings. They have gained the strength and the freedom to make independent choices as McMurphy proposed that they could.
What does a nurse say in the disturbing ward?
The nurse claims that Nurse Ratched tries to run it like an Army hospital, and she believes that all single nurses should be fired after they reach thirty-five. The nurse admits that she sometimes wishes she could keep the men there instead of sending them back to Nurse Ratched.
How does McMurphy become a martyr?
Paralleling the Christian story, McMurphy becomes a martyr in Chapter Twenty-Eight when he refuses to accommodate Nurse Ratched’s demands for an apology. McMurphy gains power and authority through receiving the electroshock treatment, just as crucifixion and resurrection demonstrate the divinity of Jesus in Christian teachings. Kesey combines this religious symbolism with the sexual themes that informed the first part of the novel, for McMurphy facetiously claims that the EST increases his sexual potency in that his next conquest will “light up like a pinball machine.” Kesey reinforces this theme when McMurphy underscores that Nurse Ratched would advocate castration. The religious parallels and increasing indications of martyrdom cause Nurse Ratched to return McMurphy to the ward, even if she only dimly perceives the depth of what he represents to the other men. His reputation can only grow while he is away; by returning him to the ward she can remind the men that he is not the godlike martyr the inmates have imagined.
What does Chief Bromden tell him about McMurphy?
Chief Bromden tells him that the other patients are suspicious about how McMurphy is always winning things and accumulating their money. Nurse Ratched orders a cautionary cleansing for the patients in which the men must line up nude against the tile of the shower room and be cleaned by the black boys.
Why does Nurse Ratched use Billy Bibbit's mother?
Yet it is when Nurse Ratched uses Billy Bibbit’s mother to instill a sense of shame that she drives him to suicide, showing with unerring finality the cause of Billy’s problems. The religious theme continues as Nurse Ratched chastises McMurphy for playing God and causing the deaths of Cheswick and Billy Bibbit.
What does Nurse Ratched say about McMurphy?
Nurse Ratched capitalizes on these fears and sets up a meeting without McMurphy, at which she implies that he is trying to fleece them of their money and that this is his only motivation in befriending them. She tells them that McMurphy is no martyr or saint but an old-fashioned con artist. Finally, she questions the profit that McMurphy made on the fishing trip. Harding breaks ranks and agrees that Nurse Ratched is correct, but he asks why they should criticize McMurphy when he is showing off his capitalist flair.
What does a nurse tell her about McMurphy's wounds?
A nurse treats McMurphy’s and Bromden’s wounds and tells them that not every ward is like Nurse Ratched’s. The nurse claims that Nurse Ratched tries to run it like an Army hospital, and she believes that all single nurses should be fired after they reach thirty-five.
What happened to Maxwell Taber?
Taber was subjected to electroshock treatments and possibly brain work, which leaves him docile and unable to think.
What does McMurphy represent in the novel?
Throughout the entire moment of his introduction, not a single voice rises to meet his. McMurphy represents sexuality, freedom, and self-determination—characteristics that clash with the oppressed ward, which is controlled by Nurse Ratched. Through Chief Bromden’s narration, the novel establishes that McMurphy is not, in fact, crazy, ...
What does McMurphy do when he takes the group of patients fishing?
When he takes the group of patients fishing, he is like Christ leading his twelve disciples to the sea to test their faith.
What is the purpose of McMurphy's sacrifice?
McMurphy’s self-sacrifice on behalf of his ward-mates echoes Christ’s sacrifice of himself on the cross to redeem humankind. McMurphy’s actions frequently parallel Christ’s actions in the Gospels. McMurphy undergoes a kind of baptism upon entering the ward, and he slowly gathers disciples around him as he increases his rebellion against Ratched.
What is the opposite of Bromden's story?
McMurphy’s trajectory through the novel is the opposite of Bromden’s: he starts out sane and powerful but ends up a helpless vegetable, having sacrificed himself for the benefit of all the patients. McMurphy’s self-sacrifice on behalf of his ward-mates echoes Christ’s sacrifice of himself on the cross to redeem humankind.
Who is Randle McMurphy?
Randle McMurphy—big, loud, sexual, dirty, and confident—is an obvious foil for the quiet and repressed Bromden and the sterile and mechanical Nurse Ratched. His loud, free laughter stuns the other patients, who have grown accustomed to repressed emotions.
Is McMurphy crazy?
Through Chief Bromden’s narration, the novel establishes that McMurphy is not, in fact, crazy, but rather that he is trying to manipulate the system to his advantage. His belief that the hospital would be more comfortable than the Pendleton Work Farm, where he was serving a six-month sentence, haunts McMurphy later when he discovers ...
What does McMurphy say about Bromden?
McMurphy says if Bromden promises to take McMurphy’s special bodybuilding... (full context) Bromden says he never felt suspicious about McMurphy until an event with the control panel . McMurphy wants to see if his training regimen has worked for Bromden, and asks... (full context)
What does the control panel symbolize in The Combine?
The control panel symbolizes The Combine and the rules of the ward that seem too big to move or change. Chief Bromden is groomed by McMurphy to get his old strength back, and at the book’s end is able to throw the control panel out of the window and escape the ward. In other words, Bromden uses a symbol of his own oppression in the ward to free himself from it, and from The Combine in general.
What does the control panel mean in the book?
The control panel symbolizes The Combine and the rules of the ward that seem too big to move or change. Chief Bromden is groomed by McMurphy to get his old strength back, and at the book’s end is able to throw the control panel out of the window and escape the ward. In other words, Bromden uses a symbol of his own oppression in ...