How One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest Changed American Culture

The Beat Generation was a literary and cultural movement that sprouted from the post-World War II era. It greatly influenced and changed American culture. From the rejection of materialism, experimentation with psychedelic drugs, and sexual liberation and exploration, the Beat Generation opened the door for a wide variety of unknown, and uncommon, views and ideas. One of the Beat Generations most famous and well-known writers was Ken Kesey. One of Ken Kesey’s most popular works, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, explores the challenges and lives of mental patients in an Oregon psychiatric hospital. Ken Kesey, an active user of psychedelic drugs, and prominent observant as a nurse’s aide in a mental institution, create a sense of authenticity

Working in a mental institution gave Kesey the insight and knowledge into patients and their perceptions of the world. During his time in the psychiatric ward, Kesey interviewed many patients, to get their perception on life inside and outside the psychiatric ward. This is where the inspiration came to form some of the characters in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. “Kesey also ingested LSD, called “tripping”, while interviewing the patients in order to gain insight into their altered perceptions of the world. He even convinced a friend to administer electroshock therapy to ensure an accurate depiction in his novel” (The Psychedelic ‘60s). Kesey had an immense interest in the altered-consciousness. When Kesey was on psychoactive drugs, he wrote some of the most vivid, important details in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. “The paranoid sections of the novel where Chief discusses his belief that the hospital where he stays is actually an emasculating factory for a larger Combine that represses individuality were largely written while Kesey was under the influence of mind-altering substances” (The Psychedelic ‘60s). Throughout Kesey’s experience volunteering in the psychiatric ward, he was able to see in depth how patients felt and how poorly they were treated during that time. “On one occasion, Kesey mentions, what’s the difference between the orderlies and the nurse and the patients? He began to see that they were all damaged in some way or another” (Kesey’s ‘Cuckoo’s Nest Still Flying At 50). Ken Kesey’s involvement and observation of treatment, therapy, and use of drugs on patients in the psychiatric ward validate the stories and writing in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. “Kesey’s works in the hospital’s mental wards is where he finds inspiration