Cry, the Beloved Country essays

Cry, the Beloved Country essays Insanity- a perfectly rational adjustment to an insane world The main characters apparent madness or irrational behavior plays an important role in the book One Flew Over the Cookoos Nest by Ken Kesey. The purpose for the madness in One Flew over the Cookoos Nest is slightly more obvious than in other books. The plot revolves around it. The madness is necessary for the discovery of the societal problems. Craziness makes the story happen, but the madness of the characters is not simply a mental disability, but rather, a reasonable adjustment to the society they are exposed to. "We are victims of a matriarchy here, my friend." Harding's explanation of life in the hospital seems be true. While the Combine undoubtedly contains both male and female workers, its main representatives in the book do appear to be women. Heading it in the hospital is Nurse Ratched, who dominates all men- even ones like Dr. Spivey who are supposed to be her superiors. Her power is expressed in very sexual terms: she is, McMurphy says after his first group meeting, "a ball-cutter." Other women include Mary Louise Bromden, who forced her husband to give up both his name and his Indian ways; Mrs. Bibbit, who dominated her son at home just as Nurse Ratched dominates him in the hospital, and more minor characters like Nurse Pilbow, who is so terrified of the power McMurphy shows she becomes a hysterical mess. Such women gain their power over men in two ways. The first is that they repress men's sexuality. Harding and McMurphy agree that Nurse Ratched's control comes from the fact that men can't be sexually aroused by her; Mrs. Bibbit has prevented Billy from becoming a functioning adult by preventing him from losing his virginity. Another really important point is that they destroy men's ability to laugh. McMurphy says, "A man go around lettin' a woman whip him down till he can't laug ...