... deaf and dumb so well that no one suspects it is an act, until McMurphy arrives. The admission of McMurphy to the institution was a catalyst for his recovery. Bromden grew up in a small fishing village in Columbia. He had to deal with racism from "white" strangers outside the tribe who were overlooking the village. "Can you imagine people ... back in the car and drive away, with me standing there wondering if they ever saw me." This continued throughout his life in the war where people treated him with no respect and acted as if he was dumb. "In the army anybody with more stripes acted th...

• Word Count: 929
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... . I believe that the turning point for Chief in the novel is when he begins to contemplate whether or not he wants to be portrayed as "deaf and dumb". For instance, on page 178, "I lay in bed the night before the fishing trip and thought it over, about my being ... on I heard what was said, and I wondered if I could ever act any other way again. But I remembered one thing: it wasn't me that started acting deaf; it was people that first started acting like I was too dumb to hear or see or say anything at all." Chief, for the first time in fifteen years, wants to talk. ... McMurphy. For in...

• Word Count: 1176
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... the men, adjusts to the mad houses rules, and sees how McMurphy tries to overrule the staff. Their relationship doesn't begin right off the bat. Because Chief pretends to be deaf and unable to speak, he becomes an observer. He observes how McMurphy interacts with the other men, the officials, nurse ratched. But most he observes how McMurphy is trying to ... make the best of what is a living hell. People talk freely around him, allowing him to learn everyone's secrets. Chief appears powerless but through observation and everyone "telling" him; he's gained a knowledge not even Nurse Ratch...

• Word Count: 656
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... outside world: Harding's bitter marriage, Billy's domination by his mother, and the Chiefs years of abuse as an Indian. And they suffer a variety of symptoms: Billy's stuttering, the Chief's apparent deaf-muteness, and Harding's uncontrollable hands. Yet it seems that the men are not so much victims of mental illness as they are of fear instilled in them by society. Unlike ... they remain sane. The insanity in the book differs from character to character. The chief is a man who has for years pretended to be a deaf-mute; his mind is a jumble of seemingly random, terrifying sights and sou...

• Word Count: 1132
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... McMurphy, the heroic rebel who lives freely or would rather not live at all. This film's message is dramatizing the rebellion against society and the true rights of the American people. Nurse Ratched plays the head of society refusing to conform to someone below her, in the case of the film, McMurphy. The Movie begins with a car's headlights move across the ... of a rebellious patient Randel Patrick McMurphy, know as Mac to the patients, is escorted into the ward where he meets some of these unusual people. A silent giant with Native American descent who goes by the nickname Chief is de...

• Word Count: 3006
• Approx Pages: 12
• Grade Level: High School

... neat-as-a-pin white uniform. The Chief has been there the longer than anyone except for Ratched. He uses this to his advantage by making the other people in the ward think he is deaf and dumb. Life in the ward is quiet until a new patient is admitted. His name is Radall Patrick McMurphy and he is a redheaded brute who smells of ... , to unravel Ratched without her knowing. Chief is a strong person, but he just doesn't know it yet. McMurphy shows him that he is strong. McMurphy knows Chief isn't dumb and deaf. McMurphy actually talks to Chief, which no one has done for a long time. By doi...

• Word Count: 961
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... her (Nurse Ratched) authority is lost as irrevocably as Billy's virginity" meaning that the death of a patient insinuates the loss of power over people (Lupack 91). McMurphy's rebellious attitude and carefree actions sparked a certain confidence in the Acutes, allowing them to rise against the staff. This calling ... novel when he assaults her" (Lupack 88). Using the Nurse's tactics against her, McMurphy succeeds in draining her power. Lastly, the deaf and dumb Chief Bromden undergoes the biggest transformation because of McMurphy's presence at the ward. Chief, overlooked his whole life...

• Word Count: 1212
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography

... neat-as-a-pin white uniform. The Chief has been there the longer than anyone except for Ratched. He uses this to his advantage by making the other people in the ward think he is deaf and dumb. Life in the ward is quiet until a new patient is admitted. His name is Radall Patrick McMurphy and he is a redheaded brute who smells of ... , to unravel Ratched without her knowing. Chief is a strong person, but he just doesn't know it yet. McMurphy shows him that he is strong. McMurphy knows Chief isn't dumb and deaf. McMurphy actually talks to Chief, which no one has done for a long time. By doi...

• Word Count: 960
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... which they lived, but certainly were much better adjusted to the real world and life in general after their experience with McMurphy. Some people may argue that the people of the mental hospital were better off without McMurphy because their lives were "normal" and routine. Their daily routine guided them through ... were both comfortable and tolerable to them, even though as a result of this they would remain subject to the manipulative ways of Nurse Ratchet. These people would say that the "oppressive society" that they lived in may not suit everyone, but certainly suited them. McMur...

• Word Count: 1663
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... believes he is small and weak. Bromden is fully capable of hearing and comprehending what is going on, and of speaking - yet he poses to be a deaf-mute. Throughout his life he has noticed that people paid no attention to him; they treated him as if he didn't exist. So the Chief gradually gave up on trying to communicate with the outside ... ...

• Word Count: 691
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... , the most dominant themes are obedience, prejudice and the question of true insanity. The strongest theme in this novel is prejudice. Many of the mental people from the ward believe that Chief Bromden a.k.a. "Chief Broom" is deaf. They simply make this assumption without and supporting medical evidence. Because of this belief, they feel the need to mock him and make fun of ... any of them up, but instead he just takes orders from them. Prejudice is also seen throughout the whole book in the sense that many people who are in the ward truly should not be. People like Chief Broom who have ...

• Word Count: 987
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... mental hospital would be insane. As Kesey introduces you to the patients, and you see the institution in their eyes, you believe that they are really normal people, and society is insane. The main character, Chief Bromden is a half Indian man, who is considered schizophrenic. Randall McMurray, the newest patient in the ... my head an' he mine me like a baby." Chief Bromden is in the hospital because he is schizophrenic, and is considered deaf and dumb, because he never talks or acknowledges people. At the end of the novel, McMurray becomes a vegetable because of all of the shock treatmen...

• Word Count: 1466
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... shocked to hear him laugh and joke around. As the men begin to learn from McMurphy how to lighten up, they become stronger and better people. Kesey is saying not to be afraid of expressing sexuality or humor just because society deems it inappropriate, because in his ideal view of society, ... it should be accepted. Kesey challenges people to break free of the oppressiveness of society. We see this rebellion in the characters. McMurphy, who does not conform, is seen in a favorable ... light and helps the other characters to escape from control. As they become less and less submissive, t...

• Word Count: 1000
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School