One Flew Over Cuckoo's Nest Essay

586 Words2 Pages

Everybody wants to be accepted, yet society is not so forgiving. It bends you and changes you until you are like everyone else. Society depends on conformity and it forces it upon people. In Emerson's Self Reliance, he says "Society is a joint stock company, in which the members agree, for the better securing of his bread to each shareholder, to surrender the liberty and culture of the eater." People are willing to sacrifice their own hopes and freedoms just to get the bread to survive. Although the society that we are living in is different than the one the Emerson's essay, the idea of fitting in still exists today. Although society and our minds make us think a certain way, we should always trust our better judgment instead of just conforming …show more content…

People will ignore their better judgment. During Milgram's experiment, many the participants had tried to stop early on, but when the experimenter said the experiment must continue, they gave in and keep administering the shocks to the learner. To be like the people who rebelled might not be easy, but it is what people should do.
We should follow our better judgment instead of conforming to society. It doesn't mean we shouldn't listen to authority, but we should rebel when it is against our better judgment. In One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, McMurphy is an individual who represents rebellion. He knew conforming to society wouldn't benefit him. He broke Nurse Ratched's rules and although he was becoming weak, he wouldn't conform. He did not try to fit into the image of a patient in a mental ward.
I have also seen conformity and rebellion. When I was in middle school, the environment was not like BCA where everyone enjoyed learning and strived to be better. Being surrounded with kids that cared more about their looks than their education was not encouraging. This may have just been a disguise. Although many students were very smart and aspire to be better students, they are afraid to show it since they are afraid that they would be made fun of. I decided I didn't care what they thought of me and showed I loved to learn. I wouldn't let them change who I

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