The Power of Laughter: How Mcmurphy Changed the Ward

1213 Words5 Pages
Laughter is so deeply ingrained within human society that it’s impossible to imagine life without it. However, laughing is exactly what the patients in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest are unable to do. This stems from their fear of Nurse Ratched, in front of whom they dare not even giggle. This all changes when McMurphy arrives, as his boisterous and humorous attitude completely changes the attitude and outlook the patients have on life. In this book by Ken Kesey, McMurphy’s interactions with the patients and encouraging of laughter help the patients develop from fearful individuals to courageous men. When McMurphy sees how fearful the patients are around Nurse Ratched, he is determined to help dispel their fear using laughter. When McMurphy first arrived at the ward, the men were too scared to laugh around Nurse Ratched, as shown by Chief’s statement that “nobody even dares let loose and laugh”(13). The patients are so afraid that they view opening up and laughing as a bad thing and prefer to keep to themselves. The few times they are unable to contain their laughter, they immediately smother it up by “snicker[ing] in their fists” (13).When McMurphy notices this, he begins trying to make them laugh. At first, he makes a joke about Ruckley’s wife, but upon seeing how little response it elicits, McMurphy realizes that “Something strange is going on” (30). From this point forward, McMurphy works harder to help the men open up and start laughing by condemning them for being too “scared to open up and laugh” (41) and continuing to tell more jokes. McMurphy openly ridicules himself and others, especially Big Nurse. From calling Chief “Sittin’ Bull on a sitdown strike” (17), to mocking Nurse Ratched about never being the “head man of the crappers” (90) when cleaning bathrooms; McMurphy continuously tries to elicit even a chuckle out of the men. The mocking of himself and
Open Document