1. How does the depiction of lobotomies and electroshock therapy differ in other works of literature and film?

2. Read Tom Wolfe’s The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test. Relate how the characters of Randle Patrick McMurphy and Chief Bromden resemble the real-life Ken Kesey and Neal Cassady.

3. Compare and contrast the similarities and differences between Jesus Christ and Randle Patrick McMurphy.

4. Trace references to machines throughout the book. Does the frequency with which they are mentioned as threatening correspond in any way with Chief’s mental states?

5. Consider Nurse Ratched as a character, rather than a symbol. How much do we really know about her personality? Speculate about Kesey’s views on the Women’s Liberation movement.

6. Trace the Civil Rights Movement in the United States since the Civil War, and explore whether Kesey’s treatment of African Americans in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is racist.