Author Archive
Welcome to the Ward
Posted by: PMurphy
Book: One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest (purchase on Amazon)
“My name is McMurphy, buddies, R. P. McMurphy, and I’m a gambling fool.”
Hi!
If you are unfamiliar with “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” here is a very brief description…
The story is set in a mental ward and narrated by Chief Bromden, a large Native-American man with schizophrenia. Chief Bromden often describes the institution as “The Combine”. The Combine is a machine to keep patients in a state of limbo and it is headed by the sadistic Nurse Ratched. None of the patients in the ward challenge Nurse Ratched’s twisted way of conducting therapy. They are afraid to do so because they may be sent to electro-shock therapy or worse. The ward is disrupted by a boisterous, energetic patient named McMurphy. He is the one to challenge Nurse Ratched’s system. He is like a guiding light for those patients caught in the fog of the Combine.
So, for my first drawing, I’m showing McMurphy’s entrance to Nurse Ratched’s ward. I’m keeping this electric color palette throughout the P.B.R. project because I think it’s a nice contrast to the subject matter. The bright colors were also inspired by the fact that author, Kesey, was using psychedelics while visiting psych wards and writing the book.
post by PMurphy
