Analysis One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest key moment

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1) Context
* Passage from One flew over the cuckoo's nest
* when Chief starts talking
* key moment because it’s the first indication of the Chief becoming sane

2) Themes
* Passage is driven by themes
* Key theme: sanity vs. insanity
=> First time it becomes really evident that Chief is becoming sane
=> "I didn't say it didn't make sense, Chief, I just said it was talkin' crazy"
* its insane, yet its sane...
* Other themes: be a man, role of sexuality
=> Be a man : Chief wants to touch McMurphy: he's a man
: "I want to touch him, because he's a man"
* Big man => Jesus
* Big vs. Little => McMurphy big, Chief feels little
* Chief starts process of becoming big => relates to sanity vs. insanity.
=> Role of sexuality : McMurphy tries to get Chief to come along on fishing trip by using women
: "both those girls are workin' shimmy dancers and hustlers..."
*Sexuality makes a man => Be a man; relates to sanity vs. insanity.
=> Living vs. Apathy : First time it evident that Chief starts to live again : he starts talking again
* Insanity vs. Sanity

3) Characters
* Chief
=> this is the moment where the Chief makes the biggest and most important change in the book : he
starts talking again
* makes him uncertain : discussing with himself; convincing himself of opposing things
* "I ought to touch him to see if he's alive… That's a lie. I know he's alive."
* McMurphy
=> character with motif qualities
=> McMurphy represents the man : the man that the chief wants to be
* theme : be a man

4) Motifs and symbols
* McMurphy
* Jesus
* Big vs. Little
=> "It's big, I thought, big as my arms used to be when I played football"
* gambling
=> " I could just make out the aces and eights tattooed there"
all relate to the theme Be a Man => Mac is THE man (he's big, chief is little; he is jesus) => Chief starts becoming a man in this passage => sanity vs. insanity : he is going from insanity to sanity


5) What drives it
* Combination of imagery and language
* Imagery drives the passage
=> Monologue of Chief in the middle
=> Chief discussing with himself what he wants to be : Be a Man => Sanity vs Insanity
* Language: before and after the main imagery
=> McMurphy's support of Chief becoming a man; becoming sane
=> simple diction : both McMurphy and Chief
=>TONE:
McMurphy : very decisive : "Yeah, Chief"… "you been talkin' crazy"
Chief : very uncertain : "It wasn't what I wanted to say. I can't say it all. It don't make sense"
* Structure : dialogue - monologue - dialogue
=> first dialogue : McMurphy pushes Chief to talk => move towards sanity
=> monologue : Chief thinks about becoming a man (=> sanity)
=> second dialogue : McMurphy helping Chief to become a man