Mitchell Bowling

Literary Analysis
Ken Kesey’s
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

In Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, McMurphy, the protagonist, is

presented as a selfish, narcissistic person. Narcissism is the fascination with oneself. Selfishness

is devoted/caring only for oneself. McMurphy shows his selfishness and narcissism through his

actions towards others. McMurphy is a selfish narcissist whose self-serving decisions of conning

the patients, manipulating the staff, and ultimately his desire for power over Nurse Ratched

results in his own death.

First, McMurphy shows his selfish narcissism through his decision of conning the

patients. McMurphy made the conscience decision to con the patients out of their money to teach

them a lesson. He even brought the chief into his con game. In accordance with Chief’s thoughts,

“I felt like I’d helped him cheat them out of their money. They were all friendly with him as they

paid their bets, but I knew how they were feeling inside, how something had been kicked out

from under them.” (p. 269). Chief became an unwilling pawn in McMurphy’s quest for power.

McMurphy never told Chief that he was really being trained to make money off the losses of his

other friends. In short, the Chief was pressured to help McMurphy win and the Chief felt horrible

about it, even when he wasn’t really given a choice about conning the men. McMurphy’s

pressuring the Chief into betraying his friends is a selfish act.

 Mitchell Bowling
Literary Analysis
Ken Kesey’s
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

In a similar sense, McMurphy reveals his egotistical ways by coming right out and saying

that he knows how to work people and he does. In McMurphy’s own words,

“The secret of being a top-notch con man is being able to know what the
mark wants, and how to make him think he’s getting it. I learned that when I
worked a season on a skillo wheel in a carnival. You fe-e-el the sucker over
with your eyes when he comes up and you say ‘Now here’s a bird that needs
to feel tough.’ So every time he snaps at you for taking him you quake in
your boots, scared to death, and tell him, ‘Please, sir. No trouble. The next
roll is on the house, sir.’ So both of you are getting what you want.” (p. 81).
Here, McMurphy has come right out and said that he has conned people before this, at a carnival,

for a job. He knows how to read people and figure out what they want and how he can use that to

his advantage to make a profit. Basically, this gives McMurpy the ability to con the mentally

challenged patients to do what he wants. Undeniable proof that McMurphy has conned the

patients is Chiefs observation,

“He isn’t even kidding himself into thinking they fall for that. He let them
win, and every one of us watching the game knows it. So do the players.
But there still isn’t a man raking up his pile of cigarettes – cigarettes he
didn’t really win but only won because they were his in the first place – that
doesn’t have a smirk on his face like he’s the toughest gambler on the whole
Mississippi.” (p. 82).
Everyone watching knows that McMurphy let the other patients win, even the other patients. But

while they are collecting their prize, McMurphy has succeeded in making them feel like they did

it all on their own, even when they know it was all McMurphy, and they feel like they can take

on McMurphy again. McMurphy plans this so that they bet even higher and then McMurphy will
 Mitchell Bowling
Literary Analysis
Ken Kesey’s
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
take advantage of them. On the whole, McMurphy uses his ability to con the patients into luring

them into a false sense of security. The conceited personality of McMurphy shows in his ability

to take advantage of mentally ill people.

In similar accord, McMurphy’s self-centeredness and care for his own personal gain are

shown in his tactics. As Chief saw, “…, the way he dealt and talked and roped them in and led

them smack up to the point where they were just about to quit, then back down a hand of two to

give them confidence and bring them along again.” (p. 81), McMurphy would do whatever it

took to keep winning. McMurphy would beat them until he saw that they were going to quit,

then he would let them win in order to help boost their confidence so that they would keep

playing and McMurphy would keep winning. This shameless con tactic shows the depth of

McMurphys uncaring for anyone other than himself. These mentally ill patients who have

enough confidence issues due to the scrutiny of Nurse Ratched are constantly having their

confidence torn down around them by McMurphy’s need for power and his self betterment. In

short, McMurphy has shown that he has his own best interests in heart and will con anyone to

keep himself on top, exposing his vainness.

Next, McMurphys selfserving actions lead to his death through his manipulation of the

staff. McMurphy manipulates a doctor using reverse psychology. In McMruphy’s first endeavor,

he uses the doctor to propose an idea of a carnival on the ward, more than likely at a cost
 Mitchell Bowling
Literary Analysis
Ken Kesey’s
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
following McMurphy’s desire to make a quick buck. Doctor Spivey says, “Anyway – to put an

end to this maudlin display of nostalgia – in the course of our conversation McMurphy and I

wondered what would be the attitude of some of the men towards a carnival here on the ward?”

(p. 108). McMurphy’s ability to manipulate a doctor shows that he is crafty and will do what it

takes to get his way. Furthermore, this is supported by more reverse psychology form McMurphy

when he wants to get the tub room for a private room to gamble with, and con, the others. As the

conversation between McMurphy and Doctor Spivey went,

“Not me, Doctor Spivey has. Doc, tell ‘em what you came up with
about the hard-of-hearing guys and the radio.’…
‘Yes,’ says the doctor. ‘I very nearly forgot.’ He leans back and crosses
his legs and puts his finger tips together; I can see he’s still in good spirits
about his carnival. ‘You see, McMurphy and I were talking about that age-
old problem we have on this ward: the mixed population, the young and the
old together. It’s not the most ideal surroundings for our therapeutic
community, but administration says there’s no helping it with the Geriatric
Building overloaded the way it is. I’ll be the first to admit it’s not an
absolutely pleasant situation for anyone concerned. In our talk, however,
McMurphy and I did happen to come up with an idea which might make
things more pleasant for both age groups. McMurphy mentioned that he had
noticed some of the old fellows seemed to have difficulty hearing the radio.
He suggested the speaker be turned up loader so the chronics with auditory
weaknesses could hear it. A very humane suggestion, I think.’
McMurphy gives a modest wave of his hand, and the doctor nods at
him and goes on.
‘But I told him I had received previous complaints from some of the
younger men that the radio is already so loud it hinders conversation and
reading. McMurphy said he hadn’t thought of this, but mentioned that it did
seem a shame that those who wished to read couldn’t get off by themselves
where it was quiet and leave the radio for those who wished to listen. I
agreed with him that it did seem like a shame and was ready to drop the
matter when I happened to think of the old tub room where we store the
tables during the ward meeting. We don’t use the room at all otherwise;
there’s no longer a need for the hydrotherapy it was designed for, now that
 Mitchell Bowling
Literary Analysis
Ken Kesey’s
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
we have the new drugs. So how would the group like to have that room as a
sort of second day room, a game room, shall we say?” (p. 110-111).

McMurphy uses his manipulation abilities to control the Doctor into thinking that the tub room

was the Doctors own idea. He did this to be able to get away with it with Nurse Ratched. This

power demonstration is an insight into McMurphy’s egotistical disposition.

In addition, McMurphy reviles his egocentric charisma through his aptitude for

manipulation through sex appeal. McMurphy uses Candy’s appearances to manipulate Doctor

Spivey into driving him and the other patients to the fishing trip. As Chief observed, “Working

together, it didn’t take McMurphy and the girl but two minutes and the little doctor was down

locking up his office and coming back up the hall, cramming papers in a briefcase.” (p.234). This

displays McMurphy’s willingness to do whatever it takes to get his way. He was cornered, with

Sandy dropping out of the fishing trip, by not having more space available to transport the other

patients to the fishing trip. Then he uses the doctors sexual attraction to Candy to rope him into

driving. This display expresses a custom of self-aggrandizement in McMurphy.

Likewise, McMurphy manipulates the staff to have his way. More specifically,

McMurphy manipulates Mr. Turkle into letting in Candy and Sandy in exchange for money,

alcohol, and the promise of sex form one of the whores, although McMurphy never intends for

Mr. Turkle to get any sex on the thought that Mr. Turkle will pass out before that. As McMurphy
 Mitchell Bowling
Literary Analysis
Ken Kesey’s
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

said while trying to manipulate Mr. Turkle, “Come on, Turkle. It’ll be worth your while. She

should be bringing a couple of bottles.” (p. 296). Then Mr. Turkle and McMurphy go into

“negotiating” the price of the party. Mr. Turkle settles on having sex with one of the whores. In

summary, McMurphy displays his conceitedness through his manipulation of the staff.

In addition, McMurphy shows his vanity through his desire for power over Nurse

Rathced. McMurphy, in order to have complete control of the guys, needs to have control over

Nurse Rathced. He comes out and says, “Just that. A bee in her butt, a burr in her bloomers. Get

her goat. Bug her till she comes apart at those neat little seams, and shows, just one time, she

ain’t so unbeatable as you think.” (p. 74). McMurphy wants to show that he has power over

Nurse Rathced to the point where he can make her blow a gasket when he wants her to. In like

manner, McMurphy tries to accomplish this on many occations. One of the more prominent

examples is when McMurphy and Nurse Ratched are discussing the fishing trip. As the narrator

saw, “Good idea,’ McMurphy said. He closed his eyes and sucked a deep breath though his teeth.

‘Yes, sir! The salt smell o’ the pounding sea, the crack o’ the bow against the waves – braving the

elements, where men are men and boats are boats. Miss Ratched, you’ve talked me into it. I’ll

call and rent that boat this very night. Shall I sign you on?” (p. 209). Here, McMurphy is trying

to fluster Nurse Ratched into blowing her gasket, so that he, physiologically, has the power. This

truly shows the cockiness that McMurphy possesses.

 Mitchell Bowling
Literary Analysis
Ken Kesey’s
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

Furthermore, McMurphy tries to gain power over Nurse Ratched by intimidating her.

According to Chief Bromden,

“The Big Nurse’s eyes swelled out white as he got close…She started
popping her mouth and looking for her black boys, scared to death, but he
stopped before he got to her. He stopped in front of her window and he said
in his slowest, deepest drawl how he figured he could use one of the smokes
he bought this mornin’, then rain his hand through the glass.
The glass came apart like water splashing, and the nurse threw her
hands to her ears. He got one of the cartons of cigarettes with his name on it
and took out a pack, then put it back and turned to where the Big Nurse was
sitting like a chalk statue and very tenderly went to brushing the slivers of
glass off her head and shoulders.” (p. 201).

This sent two messages. One was that McMurphy could intimidate Nurse Ratched. The other

message was what McMurphy can do. Putting his fist through Nurse Ratched’s only shield form

the patients, McMurphy let Nurse Ratched know that he can get to her and cause her harm. This

is a great example of the ego that surrounds McMurphy.

Even more important, McMurphy’s final ace-in-the-hole in accordance with desiring

power over Nurse Ratched. After Billy’s suicide, the other patients told Mack that it wasn’t his

fault. McMurphy saw it as his fault though. He wanted to deliver a final blow to the Big Nurse

that would insure that she would lose her power over others and he would win their little battle.

As the scene was described,

“Only at the last – after he’d smashed through that glass door, her face
swinging around, with terror forever ruining any other look she might try to
 Mitchell Bowling
Literary Analysis
Ken Kesey’s
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

use again, screaming when he grabbed for her and ripped her uniform all the
way down the front, screaming again when the two nippled circles started
from her chest and swelled out and out, bigger than anybody had ever
imagined warm and pick in the light – only at the last, after the officials
realized that the three black boys weren’t going to do anything but stand
and watch and they would have to beat him off without their help, doctors
and supervisors and nurses prying those heavy red fingers out of the white
flesh of her throat as if they were her neck bones, jerking him backwards off
of her with a loud heave of breath, only then did he show any sign that he
might be anything other than a sane, willful, dogged man performing a hard
duty that finally just had to be done, like it or not.” (p. 318-319).
McMurphy did the last thing he knew would work to gain power over Nurse Ratched, using

physical force. Mack was so self-absorbed with himself and what would happen if he did

nothing, making the Big Nurse the higher power, that he set up his own demise. Making the

other patients think he was some hero for assaulting the Big Nurse, especially Chief, made them

not want their “hero” to be used as an example, thus causing his own death, all because of

selfishness.

In conclusion, Mack’s own egocentric disposition leads to his . Due to McMurpy’s desire

to con the patients, he forms an honor bond with them by building up a trust and feelings of

accomplishment during their gambling games. This bond is further strengthened by McMurphy’s

ability to manipulate the staff. As a result, they get privileges such as using the tub room and

going on fishing trips. This in turn creates a sense of debt among the patients towards Mack.

Then, when he is being used as an example by Nurse Ratched, Chief fulfills the debt he feels

towards Mack. In short, McMurphy’s death is a result of three critical points: McMurphy’s
 Mitchell Bowling
Literary Analysis
Ken Kesey’s
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

conscience decision to cheat the other patients in a way that makes them feel like they are the

ones cheating Mack; Mack’s desire for getting his own way by controlling the staff; and

ultimitly McMurphy’s quest for authority over the Big Nurse.