"One must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star" -- Fredrick Nietzsche, Thus Spake Zarathustra
At the core of the 1975 film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, based on the 1962 book by Ken Kesey, lies a perennial problem: how can one balance Chaos and Order? The film, starring Jack Nicholson, Louise Fletcher, Danny DeVito, and Christopher Lloyd, among other notable actors, and directed by Miloš Forman, whose experience with the Soviets affected the film's content, has left an indelible mark on the American spirit and the baby boomers. Nurse Ratched, portrayed by the award-winning actress Louise Fletcher, is typically depicted as the film's villain, while McMurphy, Jack Nicholson's character, is seen as the hero. However, it is more appropriate to describe them as antagonist and protagonist, respectively. Jack represents Chaos, as many critical analyses of the film have described him, while Fletcher embodies tyranny and Order. Still, neither can be categorized clearly as good or evil. Without reiterating insights already presented by other critics and analysts of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," I aim to use the film to discuss the formal relationship between the dichotomous forces of Chaos and Order.
Chaos and Order are evidently central elements in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. These elements intertwine and unravel throughout the film's plot. I do not want to belabor the film's narrative, so I will refer the reader to a clever and comedic analysis of what can be described as a rather macabre film here. Jack Nicholson's character, as an embodiment of nature, a demonic being -- in some sense -- wrestling with civilization's rigors, defines the film's spirit.
Jack's chaotic character breathes life into the environment he is cast into, revitalizing dispirited souls and nurturing the abused. Furthermore, the film reveals that the oppressive machine, in which notable characters like Billy and Chief find themselves, is the cause of their sicknesses. As a representative of the oppressive matrix that McMurphy wrestles against, Ms. Ratched exploits the suffering and weaknesses of the men surrounding her. Ms. Ratched, i.e., the machine or matrix, renders herself necessary by perpetuating and abusing their plight.
In this regard, it becomes clear why Jack's character, McMurphy, is widely regarded as a hero, a force for good, while Ms. Ratched embodies a force for evil.
Still, irrespective of whether we label Nurse Ratched as evil or McMurphy as good, there exists immense ambiguity regarding their respective moral qualities. McMurphy has an impulsive nature. He constantly breaks rules and shows little regard for social norms. He also carries a history of serious criminal accusations and convictions. While his spirit does bring solace and rejuvenation to the broken men at the psychiatric ward, as an individual, McMurphy falls short in many aspects. Still, Nurse Ratched clearly suffers from Munchausen syndrome by proxy, seeking attention and creating dependency by perpetuating the men's suffering. Neither character deserves praise for their ethical attributes. In other words, neither character distinctly represents either good or evil. Thus, the film's viewers are compelled to analyze the film's central characters through the lens of Chaos and Order.
As the film, its characters, and plot play out in my mind's eye, it becomes unclear whether Jack's Chaos is superior to Ms. Ratched's Order. While the film seemingly suggests that Jack's Chaos is preferable to Ms. Ratched's Order, which demands individuals to become mindless cogs in her machine—a lifestyle viscerally portrayed as not worth living—the unconstrained Chaos that Chief descends into, and the unbounded Chaos that McMurphy emerged from, may not be preferable either.
McMurphy's Chaos resembles an ocean—constantly shifting, unintelligible, limitless, possessing a circuitous and violently dynamic nature. I contemplated describing this spirit as Faustian, particularly due to the film's use of Faustian colors like blue, green, and dark or earthy shades, but I ultimately refrained. I felt as if McMurphy's character lacked the genius commonly associated with a Faustian man. Instead, Randall's character is notably chthonic or demonic—a dark spirit emerging from the undulating depths of the world's psyche. In contrast, Ms. Ratched's Order is akin to fire—a purifying force that eliminates all doubts, concerns, and individuality, even when such doubts and concerns are entirely valid. Embodied in the feminine, Nurse Ratched represents a distorted depiction of the Solar Man.
Ethically, if we were to accept the world Nurse Ratched provides, as some men ultimately do (consider Miloš Forman's life under Soviet rule), we would find ourselves unjustly constrained and limited. Our potential would be drained, and our existence would lack the essential quality of becoming—of Chaos and negation—that gives life meaning, purpose, and the indescribable essence of goodness. However, if we were to live as McMurphy did, whether seen as descending or ascending (depending on one's perspective) as the Chief does by the film's end, we would encounter an incoherent and incomprehensible world. Fully immersed in McMurphy's chaotic waters, we would experience the same sense of ennui depicted in Goethe's Faust. Therefore, when viewed from a broader perspective, since neither mode is entirely livable in isolation, a formal and bihelical relationship must be established between Chaos and Order, recognizing that neither represents an absolute state.
Philosophically, this compels us to contemplate profoundly troubling questions. One significant inquiry worth considering is whether we should deny ourselves an action simply because it is perceived as wrong conventionally. For example, Foucault grappled with this predicament extensively, e.g., his epistemology, methodology, and power dynamics. In a similar vein to Foucault, McMurphy can be seen as a trickster figure, challenging us to reevaluate the rules that govern our lives and shape our world. He possesses a devilish nature. Although not consistently, he nurtures the downtrodden and can heal and reconstruct what is broken. In this regard, McMurphy, like Foucault, can be viewed as Nietzschean, transcending the boundaries of good and evil and revealing the spirit of goodness through Chaos. Both Foucault and McMurphy compel us to reassess the limitations and rules that restrict us.
Theologically, this opens Pandora's Box. Consider the following syllogism: If God is perfectly just (i.e., everything God permits is just), and He permits an act to occur (i.e., allows the act to actualize itself), but that act is regarded as sinister, evil, or unlawful conventionally, then God permitted that conventionally sinister, evil, or unlawful act and it is just. While this syllogism depends on whether you believe in God, if you do not believe in God, you effectively deny His moral framework and assert your own, thus reconfirming the initial fall from Eden in Genesis. By doing so, you tacitly imply that it is acceptable for others to do the same, permitting them to act in ways you deem unethical, unlawful, sinister, or evil. If you do not allow others to act in ways you consider unethical, unlawful, or evil, you would be a hypocrite, and the only justification for your moral framework would be force. With this in mind, we can consider Ms. Ratched's and McMurphy's actions justified. In other words, neither is inherently Good or Evil, as previously stated. More importantly, McMurphy's devilish, negative, and deconstructive nature and Ms. Ratched's tyrannical, abusive, and oppressive nature both serve the Good. If one were forced to choose between the types of Chaos and Order discussed here and felt uncertain ethically about which to choose, one need only remember that God wills all things.
Ultimately, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest's Pandora's Box unfolds the symphony of faith, where righteousness and malevolence entwine in perfect harmony. Humanity, with resolute spirit, renounces the confines of God's structure, embracing moral trajectories that lead to the dance of Chaos and Order, intertwining in eternal rhythm, reaffirming God's will. For dust are we, and to dust we shall return.
