One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Lesson Plan

Explore the relationship between the portrayal of Miss Ratched and the portrayal of Candy.

Much is made in the book of Miss Ratched's coldness and sexlessness; in some ways, this is the anchor of her cruelty, what separates her from human feeling or understanding. Candy, by contrast, is portrayed as slightly dumb but warm, convivial, and intensely sexy and sexual. Many critics have seen sexism in these portrayals, and students should be encouraged to explore that angle: a woman must be sexy and sexually giving to be seen sympathetically in this text. The difference between the Big Nurse's attempts to hide her large breasts and Candy's ease at revealing her own on the fishing...