Discrimination In One Flew Over The Cuckoo's By Ken Kesey

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The Problems in Society: Gender and Disability Discrimination “There is a plan and a purpose, a value to every life, no matter what its location, age, gender or disability.” ­Sharron Angle One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey is a story told from the perspective of Chief Bromden, a patient in a mental hospital who suffers from paranoia and hallucinations. He’s been in the hospital longer than any of the other patients, being in the institution for the last ten years. Bromden sees society as a thing he calls c ombine, and sees the hospital as a place where people who do not want to conform go. This book covers several social issues that are often overlooked, such as disability discrimination. Disability discrimination is “the unequal…show more content…
A person may be disabled if he or she is believed to have a physical or mental impairment that is not transitory (lasting or expected to last six months or less) and minor (even if he or she does not have such an impairment). (D isability Discrimination." Disability Discrimination.) The way that Bromden talks about the other patients in the hospital shows that they are human and that they are not just their disability and symptoms, as many people in society would see them. The book also shows that even though Bromden has a disability, he is still a capable…show more content…
However, unlike many of the gender related societal problems we have now, this is tied to disabilities demasculinizing many of the male patients and doctors. Nurse Ratched, the head nurse of the institution, is an overpowering force, frequently called “Big Mama” which very well could be a reference towards George Orwell’s 1984 where “Big Brother” was used as the name for an oppressive and all­knowing authority. She enters the novel with “a gust of cold” and hires certain people specifically based on her ability to overpower them. She does it in a way where they don’t see the demasculinization until it’s too late to stop it. In society, demasculinization is a bigger problem than it is made out to be. A lot of the media has focused its attention on feminism (which is the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes and an organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests ( M e r r i a m ­ W e b s t e r < / i > . M e r r i a m ­ W e b s t e r ) ) a n d e i t h e r i g n o r e s d e m a s c u l i n i z a t i o n o r i s ignorant to it. The definition of demasculinization is, “to remove the masculine character or qualities of” , and is something that is, on top of being prevalent in society, a very big theme in Rodgers
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    Ken Kesey presents a wide range of characters in his novel, specifically individuals who are oppressed and don't fit into the strict structure of society. By utilising marginalised characters Kesey manages to highlight issues of people, particularly those of a minority race, the perception of minorities and the racial stereotypes that they face. The general view of the black boys is portrayed by Chief Bromden, they are seen as a collective and are quite passive. They are completely under Nurse Ratched's

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