In One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Kesey’s use of mechanical imagery acts as a representation of the ruthlessness of society. Machines stop for nobody, and show no sympathy for those who get left behind. The Combine represents society weeding out the people who it deems “worthy,” and fulfill the expectations of the rest of society. The job of The Combine is to reform people into what is believed to be “acceptable” human behavior. It’s true that Kesey could’ve used any sort imagery in this book, but the reason he chose machinery can be explored from many different angles, thus contributing different meanings to the book.
It is no secret that Kesey uses mechanical imagery in this book in many different shapes and forms. One reason he could …show more content…
There are some cases where too much damage is done to a car, for example, where even replacing every piece possible is not enough. The most important ones cannot be replaced, so the machine will never work properly again. In this way, the machines are similar to some people, like the Chronics in the story. Even though the doctors and nurses know that they cannot be helped anymore, the Chronics are in the mental institution for life.“What the chronics are-- or most of us-- are machines with flaws inside that can’t be repaired”(16) The way Chief thinks this seems to sound like he is dehumanizing himself. He too believes that they are all just machines that cannot be fixed and are just given up on. He feels this because that’s how everyone treats the Chronics. The main point of keeping them in the mental hospital is so they do not cause trouble in the outside world. Not only that, but people don't want to have to be associated with someone who is “crazy.” “Across the room from the Acutes are the culls of the Combine;s product, the Chronics” (15) They are exiled because The Combine did not chose them as superior beings, and society thinks they're not worthy of living a normal life. When Kesey uses machinery in this way it is the opposite of other examples in the story. In this case, he is dehumanizing the patients and people who are looked down upon rather than dehumanizing The Combine, the ward and society. They aren't actually being dehumanized, but that’s how society is looking at them and treating them. This adds an aspect of irony to the novel. In the book, The Combine is treating the patients as if they are not real people, while also trying to turn them into an ideal citizen. In real life, we tend to tell people how to act and act harshly toward them when we don't agree with them, which adds confusion, because we are never given