High School Runner’s Up for Art or Science Projects - $100
Kristin Butler (The Williams School, New London)

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In One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Kesey reveals the complexities and ambiguities of schizophrenia through Bromden’s visions of fog and his paranoia about being controlled by the Combine.  Because of Bromden’s schizophrenia, the reader views the events in the ward from a distorted point of view that an objective observer could not present.  Kesey gives the reader clues, such as the fog, to reveal when Bromden is not objective, but in some parts the reader has difficulty identifying what actually occurs.  Although the use of Bromden as the narrator sometimes creates confusion as to the reliability of what he describes, it gives the reader a more insightful view of both schizophrenia and the ward.

Bromden displays symptoms of paranoid schizophrenia in the novel.  For example, when he has visions during the night of “things too goofy and outlandish to cry about and too much true to laugh about,” he does not tell anyone about them because he does not think anyone will believe him (Kesey 86).  He comes closer than most schizophrenics would to understanding that others would question what he sees.  However, he still does not consider the possibility that he is hallucinating because he trusts his own mind.  A complex succession of visions, including his vision of the machines and the vision of fog that blocks the machines from view, occurs because he accepts all of his previous visions as reality.  Bromden’s refusal to share his visions reveals his paranoia more than it displays a real grasp of the workings of a normal mind.  In addition, Bromden reveals his uncertainty over whether the other patients experience the world as he sees it when he admits that he has no proof that the fog exists for anyone but him.  On the other hand, he also rationalizes this behavior: “Nobody complains about all the fog.  I know why, now: as bad as it is, you can slip back in it and feel safe” (Kesey 123).  Bromden’s delusions may place him in a confusing and indistinct atmosphere, but they also give him a sense of security.

In addition to illustrating his schizophrenia, Bromden’s narration also accentuates the feeling of chaos and paranoia in the ward.  For instance, Bromden’s fear of authority distorts the conflict between the Nurse and McMurphy.  Bromden exaggerates the Nurse’s capabilities when he states that “she’ll go on winning, just like the Combine, because she has all the power of the Combine behind her” (Kesey 109).  His paranoia causes the Nurse to seem like an all-powerful force.  He does not see that she has human weaknesses just like the patients, so his narration does not allow the reader to anticipate her defeat.  Bromden’s narration also increases the feeling of chaos in the ward because the fog he experiences makes the events more confusing.  During one group meeting, he describes a chair floating past him and then illustrates the faces of patients such as Colonel Matterson, Pete, and Billy Bibbit that “keep filing past” (Kesey, 131).  His memories of the war and his father, which he adds in between parts of the group discussion, also help further the sense of confusion in the scene (Kesey 130).  What an objective observer would have described as a normal meeting of the patients becomes a chaotic blur of random conversation through the eyes of Bromden.

Another reason Bromden’s narration causes confusion is that the reader cannot be certain when he describes events accurately.  The reader knows that the fog and the machines do not actually exist, but he or she experiences greater difficulty in evaluating the accuracy of descriptions that seem like they might have occurred.  Near the beginning of the novel, Bromden addresses this uncertainty, asserting that what he describes is “the truth even if it didn’t happen” (Kesey 8).  This statement essentially calls the accuracy of the entire story into question.  However, by making this statement, Bromden attempts to explain to the reader that even though the story might not be factually correct, it represents a valid explanation of the facts in the way he experiences them.  He attempts to tell the reader that the message of the story does not lie in what really occurs but in the way that the patients, including Bromden, view what occurs.  Kesey’s purpose in writing the novel is to provide a picture of the ward through the patients’ eyes, and he can best accomplish this by presenting a narration in which the reader, like the patients, can never fully be sure of the truth.

Kesey’s utilization of Bromden as the narrator significantly alters the reader’s perception of the ward, allows the reader to experience paranoid schizophrenia, and causes uncertainty as to the facts of the novel.  Because Kesey never directly acknowledges Bromden’s schizophrenia, it is possible that he has post-traumatic stress disorder, in which visions result from past experiences, instead of schizophrenia.  However, the specific type of disease does not matter as much as the effect created by telling the story from a mental patient’s perspective.  By creating a sense of uncertainty, chaos, and paranoia, Kesey allows the reader to experience insanity.