One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Madness Quotes

How we cite our quotes: All quotations are from One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

Quote #4

McMurphy: Candy, this is the boys.

Candy: You all crazy?

Well isn't she polite? We can forgive Candy for the somewhat rude question, though, because we love that Candy doesn't seem all that concerned when she meets the patients from the mental hospital. In fact, she's pretty open minded about the whole thing, and even finds it kind of cool that the men are insane If only everyone were this accepting…

Quote #5

Doctor: I think he's dangerous. He's not crazy, but he's dangerous.

There can be a thin line between a crazy person and a dangerous sane person, but the doctors at the mental hospital eventually decide that McMurphy is definitely not crazy. He just has issues with authority. And an unrelenting desire for crime.

Quote #6

McMurphy: What do you think you are, for Christ's sake? Crazy or something? Well you're not.

McMurphy nearly loses his mind when he finds out that many of his friends in the mental hospital are there voluntarily. He can't imagine why they would ever want to be stuck in the hospital, but many of them think it's the best place for them to be. One of the most interesting dilemmas in the movie is whether or not he's right. These men are clearly troubled, and were having trouble making it in the outside world. But they don't seem to be faring much better under Ratched's regime, either. Could it be that the movie is also trying to point out how ill equipped our society is to deal with people who don't fit our mold of sanity?