Mcmurphy Hero's Journey

According to Joseph Campbell, the hero is someone “.who feels there's something lacking in the normal experiences available or permitted to the members of his society” (Campbell), which McMurphy, the protagonist of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, felt was quite common within society. The hero’s journey, defined by many steps, is separated into the departure, initiation, and return. In the novel by Ken Kesey, R.P. McMurphy is the hero due to his many experiences following the steps of a hero's journey and his shared characteristics with Campbell’s definition of a hero. The other protagonist of the novel, Chief Bromden, is representative of the orphan archetype. McMurphy’s journey begins when he “crosses the first threshold” and is brought to …show more content…
After extensive electroshock therapies, Nurse Ratched ultimately decides that McMurphy needs a lobotomy. When McMurphy is done with the procedure, he is not the same. He has turned brain-dead, but the only option is for Bromden to save him by ending his life. By doing this, McMurphy allowed Bromden to be free and start over, “I been away a long time” (Kesey 325). It was McMurphy who was able to start the revolution against Nurse Ratched, allowing Harding, Bromden, and some of the other Acutes to leave the ward and live the normal life that had been kept from them. McMurphy’s interactions at the ward truly show how he is the hero, as McMurphy embodies many of the characteristics of the hero archetype. He has confidence, courage, determination, and leadership skills, but with that comes egotism and over-confidence, which can blind the hero to problems. McMurphy may have never meant to be the hero to the patients, but once he entered the ward, he knew something had to be done. Mac can also be seen as a sort of Circumstantial Hero, who had the least intention of becoming a hero, before being committed to that

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