Students study the institutional processes and popular beliefs surrounding mental health in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, as they discuss and debate the themes of power, order, and authority.
Ken Kesey’s novel, popularized by the Oscar-winning movie adaptation of 1975, serves as a study of the institutional processes and the truth (or fictions) behind societal beliefs about mental health. The novel has been widely read and adapted into a Broadway play as well as the film.
Students will analyze the power struggle between the patients on the ward and the terrorizing character of the Big Nurse that serves as the major conflict of the novel. This analysis will draw students into debates and discussions about some of the central themes such as power, order, authority, and the consequences when these are abused. The novel’s instances of raw humanity also allow for students to relate to patients in a mental institution in the 1950s and consider their plight. The empathy Kesey builds in his readers helps to draw them into questioning the “truth” about “sanity” and “insanity,” thematic topics that students will consider in this unit and in other units in 11th and 12th grade English.
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Book: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey (Penguin Random House LLC, Berkley Premium Edition, 2016)
Article: “Kitty Dukakis: Electroshock Therapy Has Given Me a New Lease on Life” (National Public Radio)
Article: “Mental Health Medications” (National Institute of National Health)
Article: “Helen” (GreekMythology.com)
Short Story: “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Book: The Missing Kennedy: Rosemary Kennedy and the Secret Bonds of Four Women, by Elizabeth Koehler-Pentacoff (Bancroft Press, 2016)
Speech: “Andrew Jackson’s Speech to Congress on 'Indian Removal'” by President Andrew Jackson (CommonLit.org)
See Text Selection Rationale
This assessment accompanies Unit 3 and should be given on the suggested assessment day or after completing the unit.
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This unit focuses on a type of writing that is frequently assessed on the new SAT. Specifically, students will explain how an author uses specific literary devices to convey his/her message in a single text. In the future, students will need to do the same for a pair of texts, but for this unit they will focus on just one text.
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metaphor, onomatopoeia, diction, analogy, allusion, juxtaposition, theme, motif, pathos
-otomy (lobotomy, leucotomy), aud- (auditory), jur- (jurisdiction), circ- (circumvent)
Part 1: hullabaloo (5), precise (5), calculated (5), enamel (5), seclusion (9), admission (10), acute (15), chronic (15), nuisance (16), ornery (19), persecutes (22), cagey (24), whirring (25), hefting (25), orient (25), hypodermic (27), manipulator (27), intolerable (28), efficiency (29), accumulate (29), appraises (30), hostility (34), frenzied (38), nimble (40), lolling (43), brawn (44), insubordination (45), democratic (49), grievance (49), fester (49), subconscious (50), acoustic (50), murky (55), cadaver (55), prosecutors (56), quaint (57), fracas (57), taut (58), braggart (59), vitals (60), grimace (61), veritable (61), incapable (63), devour (64), astute (65), bashful (65), sly (66), vogue (69), consolation (70), matriarchy (71), juggernaut (71), impregnable (73)
Part 2: scant (77), transmit (79), branded (80), stoicism (80), spiel (80), lacerations (82), flusters (83), hydroelectric (86), bloated (89), outlandish (90), shrewd (91), policy (93), convalescent (97), physique (100), gaudy (100), heathen (105), reminisce (108), maudlin (108), nostalgia (108), auditory (110), spell (117), turmoil (118), mope (119), scowling (120), assets (123), procedure (140), hex (142), jurisdiction (144), recrimination (145)
Part 3: bile (151), fiendish (151), defy (152), comparative (154), thwarted (154), authoritarian (155), smoldering (157), brashness (157), femininity (159), sufficient (159), manufacture (161), haywire (162), silage (165), commenced (165), lope (165), gripe (167), spite (177), confound (179), haggard (180), schematic (182), curtail (183), inadequacies (184), concise (189), perverse (190), rational (190), jargon (191), lucid (192), committed (194), rebellious (199), impose (199), circumvent (199), tactic (205), menace (207), treachery (209), hovel (211), fraternize (212), squalor (212), metropolis (214), sterilized (229), predicament (230), speculation (233), gawk (234), sullenly (238), waiver (242), idle (245), cormorants (247), gaff (248), grim (252), rigorous (255), vaguely (256), woebegone (257)
Part 4: maneuver (261), martyr (264), stingy (266), chicanery (266), cautionary (270), initiative (273), trudging (274), clatter (276), drawling (277), hunkered (277), cogs (282), anoint (283), corrosion (283), vulnerable (291), peaked (293), chastity (296), artificial (301), tranquilize (304), recuperations (306), mellow (308), discretion (315), forcibly (315), contemptuous (316), ordeal (317), shudder (317)
Combine (3), Public Relations (9), Eisenhower (21), vial (27), Inside vs. Outside (28), wheelers (28), vegetables (28), latrine (35), spine tap (36), Seconal (37), Punch & Judy (37), Korea (45), shindig (57), takes the cake (60), synthetic opiate (63), Red Chinese (66), Marilyn Monroe (71), black jack (81), Catholic (83), dam (87), catwalk (87), scalpel (88), conman (92), Canada honkers (94), geriatrics (98), twitches (102), IOU (105), Monopoly (114), buck (138), Napoleon, Genghis Khan, Attila the Hun (154), hydrocephalus (172), epileptic (177), Dilantin (177), anti-convulsant (179), hoity-toity (185), herded (188), c’est la vie (189), lobotomy (189), raise Cain (190), frontal lobe castration (191), on the ropes (193), canteen (197), Chinook salmon (209), Hiawatha (212), Spearmint Gum (217), crazy like a fox (264), dry (267)
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“Kitty Dukakis”
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 69 – 189
Compare and contrast Dukakis and Kesey’s views on electroshock therapy.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 3 – 8
Characterize and evaluate the reliability of the narrator.
Characterize the Big Nurse and explain her role in the novel.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 10 – 14
Characterize McMurphy based on his initial appearance on the ward.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 15 – 19
Describe the social order amongst the men on the ward.
Characterize Billy Bibbit.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 20 – 26
Describe the conflict between Harding and McMurphy.
Explain how the men on the ward view the narrator.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 28 – 35
Explain the author’s use of structure to reveal theme.
Further characterize Nurse Ratched based on the author’s use of diction.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 36 – 41
Explain the metaphor of The Combine using textual evidence.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 49 – 55
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Explain the impact of the “Therapeutic Community” on Pete Bancini.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 55 – 62
Evaluate the interaction between McMurphy and Harding based on dialogue and actions.
Identify and analyze an analogy used in the novel.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 69 – 75
“Helen”
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Determine McMurphy’s motivation behind his bet.
Explain how conflict reveals theme. Identify and analyze the allusion use in this excerpt.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 76 – 81
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Analyze the impact of the “fog” on the narrator.
Explain how the music conflict further characterizes McMurphy.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 85 – 90
Explain how Bromden’s dream reveals theme.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 95 – 101
Explain how the author builds theme through conflict.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 105 – 113
Explain how the author uses conflict and diction to further characterize McMurphy and Nurse Ratched.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 117 – 125
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Explain the symbolism of the steel control panel.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 130 – 137
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Explain how the fog can both protect and harm Bromden.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 145 – 145
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
“The Yellow Wallpaper”
Explain how Kesey and the author of the “The Yellow Wallpaper” each use conflict to develop theme.
Writing
“The Yellow Wallpaper”
Explain how the author of the “The Yellow Wallpaper” uses literary devices to develop theme.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 149 – 158
Explain the different claims about McMurphy among the staff.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 159 – 166
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Identify and explain the impact that McMurphy is having on Bromden.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 169 – 175
Analyze the reasons for the change in McMurphy’s behavior.
Explain the connection between McMurphy’s breaking and Cheswick’s death.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 176 – 181
“Mental Health Medications”
Debate if the benefits of medication outweigh the side-effects.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 182 – 187
The Missing Kennedy pp. 63 – 73 — Rosemary’s surgery
Describe the reasons behind the conflict between Harding and his wife.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 188 – 196
Debate the factors that keep the men in the ward.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 197 – 201
Explain the purpose behind Bromden’s flashbacks.
Debate whether the Nurse or McMurphy is “winning” the battle by the end of Part 3.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 205 – 215
“Andrew Jackson’s Speech to Congress on 'Indian Removal'”
Describe the growing conflict between McMurphy and Nurse Ratched.
Explain how Bromden’s past has impacted his current behavior.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 215 – 224
Describe how McMurphy’s influence has changed Bromden.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 225 – 234
Describe the conflict between Nurse Ratched and McMurphy.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 234 – 241
Explain the shift in mood and the cause of this shift.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 2241 – 250
Explain what McMurphy’s laughter represents.
Analyze and explain the author’s use of figurative language to reveal theme.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 250 – 258
Explain the impact of rules and regulations on the boat vs. off of the boat.
Explain McMurphy’s motivation and plan for further rebellion.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 261 – 270
Analyze and explain McMurphy and the Big Nurse’s motivations throughout this section of the text.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 276 – 283
Explain the shift in power dynamics.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 289 – 298
Explain the impact the treatments are having on both Bromden and McMurphy and how their response to treatment contributes to the overall conflict.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest pp. 305 – 309
Explain how the events of the night have impacted the men.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest — 310-end
Analyze and explain McMurphy’s final attempt to take down the Big Nurse and what this attempt symbolizes.
Assessment