Electroshock Therapy

In One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest

By Binh, Charles & Duncan

Alphabetized!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thesis
In Ken Keseys One Flew Over the Cuckoos
Nest, EST is used to represent Nurse Ratcheds
power in the ward and how McMurphy
challenges her.

Theme (Binh)
The theme of this motif is that Electroshock
Therapy symbolizes the iron fist that Nurse
Ratched holds over the ward and how
McMurphy resistance to the ECT shows how he
is challenging nurse Ratched authority. Another
theme would be the destruction of natural
impulses.

Support - Iron Fist (Binh)

This time I came fighting out of it in less than a day, less time than
ever. - Chief Bromden Pg 289
Throughout the book, nurse Ratched uses electroshock therapy to
control the patients in which she deems uncontrollable under her iron
fist. Many of the Acute were subjected to ECT to leave them docile and
unable to think, therefore not possible to challenge Ratcheds authority
and serve as examples of Ratcheds tyranny. However McMurphy seems
to resists the effect of this treatment and eventually Chief Bromden,
showing that McMurphy will not submits to Nurse Ratched and Chief
Bromden wants to achieve his freedom

Quotes - Iron Fist (Binhs)

Look at him: a giant janitor. Theres your Vanishing American, a six-foot-eight
sweeping machine, scared of its own shadow. That, my friend, is what we can be
threatened with. Pg 69
The table shaped like a cross, with shadows of a thousand murdered men
printed on it, silhoutte wrists and ankles running under leather straps sweated
green with use, a silhouette neck and head running up to a silver band goes
across the forehead. Pg 132
Hell,all they was doin was chargin his battery for him, free for nothing..No,
I aint scared of their little battery-charger. Pg 290
She saw that McMurphy was growing bigger than ever while he was upstairs
where the guys couldnt see the dent she was making on him, growing almost
into a legend. Pg 291

Support - Natural Impulses

The ECT machine is use to suppress human
natural impulses and turning them into
machines that obey Nurse Ratched. The biggest
example would be Chief Bromdeb whose past is
closely linked with nature to be surpress into a
machine " 6'8 Janitor ". Pg 69

Natural Impulses
Another example would be McMurphy.
McMurphy is a boisterous fun loving rebel and
lusty, life affirming fighter - all natural
impulses to be subjected to ECT to surpresses
his natural impulses

Character & Relationships Duncan Mackenzie

Chief Bromden:
The motif of EST reveals the Chief's skittish nature, as
well as the fact that he fits the character of an nane man
better than most of the patients.
This motif also demonstrates the Chief's relationships
with Nurse Ratched, the acutes and McMurphy.

Chief Bromden Cntd... Duncan Mackenzie

Nurse Ratched: The motif of EST shows how little
compassion Ratched has for the Chief, that she cares more
about the order in her ward than restoring his sanity. We
see this in pages 69 and 131-2.

The Acutes: The conversation between the acutes and

McMurphy about EST (Pg 69-70) reveals their perception
of the Chief, that he is a shadow of a man and a victim of
Nurse Ratched's tyranny.

Chief Bromden Cntd... Duncan Mackenzie

McMurphy: We can see the on page 283, the moments
preceding McMurphy's first treatment, a sort of father-son
relationship between McMurphy and the Chief. With the
Chief trying to put a on a brave face for Mac's benefit and
McMurphy volunteering to go first to protect the Chief.
However, McMurphy's role as a father extends over all of
the acutes througout the novel.

Character & Relationships Duncan Mackenzie

The Acutes: As seen in Pg 69-70, there are in fact a few
acutes who could not initially be subdued by a few of Nurse
Ratched's pointed questions, but these cases, by the time of
McMurphy's arrival on the ward, have all been broken
down by EST, the embodiment of Nurse Ratched's
authority on the ward.

Character & Relationships Duncan Mackenzie

McMurphy and Nurse Ratched: In pages 289-90,
we can see a perfect example of how little power Ratched
has over McMurphy, that he would defy her to the end, but
also that Nurse Ratched has no idea how to effectively deal
with McMurphy. It is also noticeable that McMurphy's flare
is, to a certain extent, a facade, in the way "...his whole face
drained of color," whenever he learns that he must go to the
"shock shop."

Imagery and Symbolism Charles

The imagery of the EST machine is closely related to the
cross and the crucifiction of Jesus Christ. On page 69,
Harding explicitly describes the EST machine as being
shaped, ironically, like a cross, with a crown of electric
sparks in place of thorns (pg. 69). The EST machine also
has ones wrists and ankles shackled, implying the nails of
the cross.

Imagery and Symbolism Charles

This imagery is helped along with the fact that those who go
through it once either do not want to go through it again or
are unable to go through it again (e.g. Ellis and Taber.
Further imagery with Ellis being explicitly nailed to a wall
during the daytime).

Imagery and Symbolism Charles

This cross alludes to the crucifixions by the Roman Empire,
who crucified those who opposed them and to show their
absolute power. Therefore, Nurse Rached alludes to the
Roman Empire itself, with the way that she asserts her
dominance over the ward. If any oppose her, they go
through the EST, or they are crucified.

Imagery and Symbolism Charles

These crucifixions furthermore allude to the relations
between McMurphy and Jesus Christ, in the way that he
sacrifices himself by going for the EST first (pg. 282). This
is further alluded to by the fact that McMurphy continues to
defy her after the EST, alluding to how Jesus Christ was
resurrected after his crucifixion.

Imagery and Symbolism Charles

Quotes:
You are strapped to a table, shaped, ironically, like a
cross, with a crown of electric sparks in place of thorns. [...]
Enough of these treatments and a man could turn out like
Mr. Ellis you see over there against the wall. A drooling,
pants-wetting idiot at age thirty-five. Or turn into a
mindless organism that eats and eliminates and yells fuck
the wife, like Ruckly. Or look at Chief Broom clutching to
his namesake there beside you. (Harding, pg. 69)

Imagery and Symbolism Charles

Quotes:
Take er easy, Ill go first. My skulls too thick for them
to hurt me. And if they cant hurt me, they cant hurt you.
(McMurphy, pg. 282)