Rock and a Hard Place

      When Randall Patrick McMurphy showed up on the psychiatric ward, there was a palpable change in the atmosphere. With his outgoing personality and flagrant disregard for authority, the reader could tell McMurphy would make things fun, or at least extremely interesting. He stood up to Nurse Ratched in a way no other patient had dared to. Finally, the men had a champion, a rabble rouser to carry their cause. Then, all of a sudden, he stopped. McMurphy decided to play it safe. He found out that the more trouble he causes, the longer he will stay in the ward. Then, the situation on the ward started to get depressing again. And I really want to get angry with McMurhpy; I want to criticize him for giving up and acting cowardly. But I cannot. McMurphy has a lose-lose situation on his hands. How can one blame him for wanting to get off the ward and away from the Nurse as soon as he possibly can? I can sympathize with that completely. On the other hand though, the book was a lot more exciting when McMurphy did not play by the rules. He gave the patients something to live for, for the first time in many years, and their characters blossomed before our eyes. But with McMurphy playing nice, everyone goes back to their lifeless selves, trapped in a hopeless situation. All I know is that this situation cannot last long because it does not make for a very entertaining book.