One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest Summary

Summary: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
This particular film is about Randle McMurphy, a criminal who upon serving a brief stint in prison for rape pleads insanity and is relayed to a mental institution. On being moved to the said institution, McMurphy rallies up colleagues (the rest of the patients) against a harsh and cruel nurse. The film is based on a novel by the same name.
One of the psychiatric concepts displayed in the film is electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). ECT is, in essence, a process that attempts to adapt brain chemistry via the passage of small electric currents through a person’s brain. In this film McMurphy is taken through this procedure. It is important to note that in the past, as is demonstrated in the case of McMurphy, the process was largely brutish and harsh in that it involved the passage of intense doses of electricity (often times without the administration of anesthesia).
Next, we have anxiety. In basic terms, anxiety involves intense feelings of worry and tension. Persons experiencing bouts of anxiety experience intense worry and could be extremely irritable. In some instances, anxiety comes about in response to specific triggers, in which case such an occurrence is referred to as a panic attack. In the film, Billy experiences anxiety on more than one occasion. Towards the end of the movie, Billy experiences an intensive panic attack that leads him to take his own life after a run-in with Ratched.
Yet another psychiatric concept displayed in the movie is bias (specifically in-group bias). This concept, in essence, postulates that people tend to favor groups in which they belong to. For example, assuming we have three groups; A, B, and C, and there is a huge apple pie to be shared, and the one to share the pie amongst the three groups is selected from Group B, such an individual is likely to allocate the largest portion of the pie to that group in which he belongs, i.e. Group B. This concept is particularly true in instances involving scarce resources. In-group bias is evident throughout the movie – with the patients and the orderlies constantly demonstrating a ‘them vs. us’ mentality.
Next, we have group polarization, in which case a group embraces courses of action that could not have otherwise been adopted in individual capacities. This often explains why the behavior or attitudes of an entire group could in some instances appear thoughtless and extreme when taken into consideration from an individual standpoint. In the film, we have an instance where Harding’s exasperation brings about a meltdown of the entire group, with most screaming and others (like Cheswick) crying.
Last, but not least, are femininity/masculinity attitudes or gender role. These include behavioral patterns that, mostly defined by upbringing or culture, are expected to conform to the gender identity of a person. In that regard, some attitudes and behaviors are seen as being more masculine than feminine – and vice versa. Ratched’s behavior and attitudes do not conform to this simplistic perception of gender roles. This is more so the case taking into consideration her overbearing character and penchant for not only the mortification, but also the humiliation of those she has authority over (mostly men).
In the final analysis, One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest is a wonderful film that has far reaching and significant psychological connotations. In addition to having changed my attitudes towards persons with mental health conditions, the film also enabled me to have different view of mental institutions. I am now more convinced that mental institutions are not just mental health units, but also social institutions.