When Two Worlds Collide

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When Two Worlds Collide – a highlight of friendship in One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest and a Separate Peace Jessica McLean There’s always that one kid your parents tell you to stay away from. You know you’re supposed to stay away from them but somehow they always drag you in and you end up becoming best friends and realizing they’re really not that bad. This can be shown in both One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest and A Separate Peace. Despite coming from structured societies, McMurphy from One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and Phineas from A Separate Peace both rebel against their surroundings causing Bromden and Gene to discover themselves. Both McMurphy and Phineas are a part of well structured societies. They are both part of institutions which have high expectations. McMurphy is part of a mental hospital ward in which he is forced to behave in a certain way. The hospital expects their patients to behave properly despite their disabilities or mental state. Its obvious expectations that they need to follow the rules and do what the authorative figures instruct. They have specific times for bed, showering, eating and free time which is all monitored. The schedule is very structured so it’s easier for the patients to feel more welcome and comfortable in their surroundings. Likewise, Phineas is part of a well respected and prestigious institution, the Devon School. Being an all boys private school, they have many rules and high expectations. The students are expected to act professionally and maturely despite still being young teens. There were unwritten expectations for the students. Not only did they expect their students to do well in school, but they were encouraged to participate in sports. This is obvious when Gene says “Devon was both scholarly and very athletic, so the playing fields were vast and, except at such time of the year, constantly in use.” (pg.
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