Document Type
Freshman Seminar Essay
Publication Date
1984
Excerpt
A community contains many individuals, all of whom have a unique past, present, and future. Each deals with his personal history through a variety of defense mechanisms, yet often these psychological tricks hinder the development of human relationships. In Ken Kesey's novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, the residents at the mental hospital invent protective behaviors which put them in conflict with their environment. Precisely because of these many safeguards, they cannot reach out to one another. Before the men on the ward can form a strong community, they need to understand the reasons for their defense mechanisms and then overcome these protective strategies.
Recommended Citation
Donohue, Liz, "The Role of Defense Mechanisms in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1984)" (1984). The Valpo Core Reader. 549.
http://scholar.valpo.edu/core_reader/549