Ardillo 1

Anthony Paul Ardillo, III

Doctor Brenda Bryant
ENGL 240-1RA
9 May 2014
Whistling Past the Graveyard
In the moment that an action is taken that might be considered sinful, the thought of
possible consequences for those actions hardly ever cross ones mind. Lesser than thinking of the
consequences is the occurrence that one considers how they would defend said action to an
ultimate judge. In the context of this essay, ultimate judge for Nurse Ratched, Randle
McMurphy, and Serena Joy is the Christian version of God. Through judging them, also in the
context of this essay, this ultimate judge will use the seven deadly sins, a classification of vices
that are considered serious offenses in Christian lore. The seven deadly sins are greed, sloth,
gluttony, lust, wrath, envy, and pride. Using this template for judgement, a fair analysis of what
sins the characters have committed and how they would defend this can be achieved.
At the end of Nurse Ratcheds life, it is not difficult to imagine that a supreme being
known for mercy and compassionattributes that can be given to him if his book is selectively
readmight take issue with some of the actions that Nurse Ratched took in Keseys novel.
Through the format of investigating actions through the seven deadly sins, Ratched committed
the sins of wrath and pride. For instance, Ratched had pride in herself that she could handle the
manipulator McMurphy from the start of his antics until he attempted to murder her. Even
during the staff meeting in Part Two of the novel when Dr. Spivey and the residents recommend
that McMurphy be sent to the Disturbed ward, she flaunts herself as being capable to handle him,
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and is prideful in the fact that the other patients opinions and views of McMurphy matter more
than the safety, civility, and stability of the ward in its entirety in saying: He would be a martyr
to them. They would never be given the opportunity to see that this man is not an-as you put it,
Mr. Gideonextraordinary person. (Kesey 155). Though logically speaking, one could never
successfully defend these actions, being the woman that is so sure in herself and her methods
Ratched would claim that she was trying to help McMurphy and those on the ward. She would
claim that this would be therapeutic for the other patients, seeing that order and obedience was
nonnegotiable, and that there was never an easy way out.
Ratched, after she has dealt with patients through the Shock Shop or Frontal-lobe
castration (Kesey 182), has them in the ward as her trophies. Through these insane and
sadistic means of therapeutic help to the patients, she shows herself to be extremely wrathful.
Chief Bromden mentions this when speaking about Ellis, a Chronic who had an overloaded
treatment of EST, in stating, He's nailed like that on the wall, like a stuffed trophy. (Kesey 37).
Though these were some of the methods used in the time of this novel to help treat the
mentally ill, Ratcheds use of these methods were sadistic and overused. In defending these
actions, Ratched would not try and reckon with whether or not this was the proper way to handle
patients. She does not seem, throughout the novel, to be a woman of any compassion,
understanding, or regret. Her defense for not only these actions listed, but everything she did in
the novel would be that she was a woman who was trying to maintain order and help people.
However, the way in which she did these things would lead her to be dumbfounded and without
an excuse when judged for her actions.
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Randle McMurphy is a man who has no reverence for anything spiritual, so it would most
likely never have occurred to him the possible consequences for his actions, or how they might
be judged. Even though he is the novels protagonist, he still commits the sin of pride.
McMurphy believes that he can get the best of Nurse Ratched, and makes a bet with Harding
stating that, One week, and if I don't have her to where she don't know whether to shit or go
blind, the bet is yours. (Kesey 88). This haughty statement and what he does in an attempt to
annoy and disrupt Ratcheds order obviously shows pride from McMurphy.
Rather than Ratched, McMurphy has a case to present to the supreme judge of his actions
in life. Without his usual cunning grin, one can imagine McMurphy explaining to God that he did
this because Nurse Ratched was so evil and so heartless. He would explain that at that point, he
had no idea what the consequences for his actions could be since he was committed rather than
being a voluntary patient. Also, he would claim that in his actions, he helped the other patients to
have the courage to stand up to Nurse Ratched and be their own person. Since McMurphys
actions eventually helped better the patients on the ward, it can be assumed that his
transgressions would be forgiven.
Unlike many of the characters in Keseys novel, there is a sense of renewal in The
Handmaids Tale for Serena Joy. In front of God, she would obviously make the argument that
her actions were taken because of his judgement and oversight, rather than against it. One can
make the claim that she sees what is wrong with the system that is in place when she tells Offred
to try and have a child with Nick. Also, she tells Offred about her daughter. These actions of
compassion and mercy towards Offred show a renewed Serena Joy by the end of the novel.
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In conclusion, all of the characters committed sins throughout the novel, some of the sins
being one or more of the seven deadly sins. In judging Serena Joy, Randle McMurphy, and Nurse
Ratched through the template of the seven delay sins, a fair and balanced judgement could have
been made by the Christian version of God in looking over their actions. Where the judgement
would lead them in their proposed second life would not only be up the judge mentioned, but
also would be based on their defense given for the actions.