Juxtaposition In One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest

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Control Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest Control wins as soon as it is doubted; doubts lose as soon as they are controlled. Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest integrates juxtaposition, irony, and foreshadowing to reinforce this point. The entire story is told through the eyes of Chief who understands everything about the people in the hospital, yet he deceits everyone about being deaf and stupid, never speaking a word in the first half of the story. Chief continues by speaking about Nurse Ratched, who is a fraud that is in control of everything. Everything. Once the hero is introduced, McMurphy, the patients trust that he may “beat” Ratched. Chief begins to clarify that Ratched never loses and McMurphy is a lost hope. As the story progresses, …show more content…
At this point in the book, most patients, including Chief, believe that McMurphy may “beat” Ratched based on a wager made earlier in the book. Chief’s anger is exceedingly displayed when he accuses McMurphy …show more content…
Chief walks into the tub room where he sees this control panel with its “...chrome fixtures and glass gauges…”(Kesey 324). Chief rips this control panel off of the ground the same way he tears Ratched’s control off of his mind and soul when he placed his “back toward the screen, then spun and let the momentum carry the panel through the screen and window with a ripping crash.(Kesey 324).This quote is imperative to the story, because Chief is finally free of this weight that has weighed down on him like an elephant on a dog. Chief finally takes control of his own doubt by taking this “control panel”, which is made for cleaning, and launching it out of the window. This is a contradiction to Chief’s previous thoughts, however it does support the thesis. Chief’s doubts do lose against Ratched’s control, but HIS control wins over HIS doubts. Chief taking command of his actions for the first time wins over any doubt he ever had of never escaping Ratched’s rule. People begin to wonder: Why would Chief leave a place where he has food on his plate, a roof over his head, and a bed to sleep in despite Ratched’s control? Chief was perfectly fine before McMurphy came in so what happened? Chief had an awakening when McMurphy died prior to his escape. He realizes that Ratched’s
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