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cb1984's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
It's clearly a great book. There's a reason it's a classic. I guess I felt like the impact was a bit lessened with the plot being so familiar. It'll probably be a good one for book club discussion though.
I was going to say that there were elements that haven't aged well (the constant casual racism), but in some ways that actually helps develop some of the characters really well, in that it reveals some of their inner horribleness.
Graphic: Physical abuse, Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Racial slurs, Bullying, Torture, and Suicide
hleary's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Bullying, Racism, Chronic illness, Suicide, Mental illness, and Ableism
angelofthetardis's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I don't know what it is with me and books that are labelled 'classics', but I don't think I've found one yet that I've truly enjoyed. This was no exception - I just couldn't immerse myself in the story or even pick out moments of clarity that stuck with me. While I understand that this is written from the point of view of a mentally ill person confined to a hospital ward, and by choosing this narrator the author has allowed the reader to experience the 'fog' of confusion and twisted logic experienced daily by the patients, it's rambling relaying of events left me more lost than confused. I followed the general plot, but had no inclination to take more care with my reading to study the text and events in depth.
From a modern perspective, the methods outlined in the story are clearly not the right way to treat mental illness. But then I queried whether several of the characters illnesses were all that acute anyway. Yes, some people (the narrator included) clearly did have delusions or other issues that may require in-patient care, but there seemed so little character building on much of the supporting cast that it felt like they were there purely to pad out the cast list.
I guess the author's main aim was to try and make the reader consider whether McMurphy's illness was feigned or genuine. He reminds me a little of Campbell Bain in 'Takin' Over The Asylum' (although I'm sure in reality the latter was in some way influenced by the former); a manic depressive who, after a moment of inspiration, starts to subvert the normal order of things within his environment. But this right here sums up how hard I found the book to relate to; if I'm drawing parallels with the works of David Tennant (rather than just picturing him as my leading man), then you know my mind has wandered to a better place!
I also can't understand where this reputation for Nurse Ratched being one of literature's great villains has come from. To me, she seems like a no-nonsense, firm but fair person who is doing her best to do what must be an incredibly difficult job without letting it affect her, and doing what she thinks is best for her patients based in the knowledge of the time. Yes, it's clear that McMurphy gets under her skin and she does start to become a little vindictive about punishing him for his transgressions, but I just can't equate that with the totally twisted person I had been expecting going into this. I can only suspect that it's because the story is written through the male gaze at a time when women in positions of authority were rare and dangerous creatures...
Not what I was expecting or hoping for, and quite underwhelmed. Never mind. I tried.
Graphic: Medical content, Racism, Mental illness, Bullying, Forced institutionalization, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Medical trauma, and Racial slurs
Moderate: Alcohol, Death, Ableism, Cursing, Murder, Suicide, Drug use, Misogyny, Suicide attempt, Sexism, Violence, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual content, Infidelity, and Panic attacks/disorders
swimfast724's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Suicide, Body shaming, Bullying, Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, and Suicide attempt
arinheck's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual assault, Violence, Racial slurs, Suicide, Body horror, Confinement, Colonisation, Forced institutionalization, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Drug use, Death of parent, Ableism, Bullying, and Alcoholism
lizkocher's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Cursing, Terminal illness, Torture, Suicide, Chronic illness, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Violence, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Death, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Medical trauma, and Sexual content
Moderate: Hate crime, Sexism, Child abuse, Abandonment, Bullying, Dementia, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, and Misogyny
Minor: Toxic relationship, War, Blood, Sexual harassment, and Suicidal thoughts
grantelope's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Minor: Mental illness, Suicide, Medical trauma, Emotional abuse, and Bullying
foxo_cube's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
I will say that it isn't perfect. It's, shall we say, a product of its time: most common-or-garden varieties of discrimination are thrown in casually here and there, and it does make me cringe a little bit at points. Personally, I try not to hold older books to the same standard I'd hold new publications in that regard, but it's worth mentioning as it is a little off-putting.
The main storyline is that of a criminal, McMurphy, entering a psychiatric ward expecting an easier life than what he was experiencing on a work farm, and discovering that he has made a terrible mistake. Being a rebel by nature, he quickly makes it his job to break down the strict and cruel Head Nurse.
The clashes between the staff and McMurphy are great - sometimes funny, sometimes shocking, sometimes devastating, often some mix of all those things - but what I love so much about the book is how the patients of the ward have real humanity to them, and the slow but sure change in atmosphere throughout the war between McMurphy and Nurse Ratched is written beautifully. McMurphy is a rough, problematic, but undeniably charming character with a gentleness to him we only see through Bromden's eyes, especially when they form a friendship.
This aspect, the platonic love story, is one of my favourite things about the book overall. The way Bromden discusses him, and their conversations, even when they're focused on boosting Bromden's confidence (usually in pretty bawdy fashion), is written with a lovely tenderness. McMurphy is a grey-area character who most definitely manipulates the hell out of a lot of the patience for money and cigarettes, but his growing care towards the people on the ward and rage at the mistreatment they face is, nonetheless, very real.
Bromden is a proudly unreliable narrator who phases in and out of the "fog", as he describes it - seemingly dissociative periods where he exists on autopilot, or flashbacks to his past, or hallucinates. He has spent his time on the ward pretending that he can neither hear nor speak, meaning he gets to be a fly on the wall during private meetings and such due to the staff often using him as a cleaner. He hates the system he's in, the state of the world, and the treatment he faces on the ward, but feels powerless to stop it, meaning that McMurphy is both a godsend and a terrifying presence to him. His character growth is fairly subtle at first, but the end scenes - which are devastating - are a powerful culmination of the book's events: when McMurphy is lobotomised, Bromden performs the most sincere expression of love and respect that he possibly could have.
I've read this book a good few times now, and it's always a total rollercoaster ride of emotions.
Graphic: Mental illness, Blood, Suicide, Ableism, Misogyny, Bullying, Violence, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Emotional abuse, Death, Racial slurs, Confinement, Sexism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Cursing, Racism, and Gaslighting
Moderate: War, Sexual assault, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Homophobia, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Grief, Sexual harassment, Physical abuse, and Injury/Injury detail
islajackson's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Violence, Death, and Ableism
mariaviola's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, and Mental illness
Moderate: Alcohol, Confinement, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death, Cursing, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Death of parent, and Medical content
Minor: Alcoholism, Blood, Bullying, and Homophobia