Set in Oregon psychiatric hospital in the early 1960s, Ken Kesey's pivotal novel tackled ideas of institutionalization in a time when mental illness was highly stigmatized. Essays in this volume include a survey of the novel's critical reception, a comparison of Cuckoo's Nest to The Grapes of Wrath, and an examination of themes such as race, gender roles, and early American humor.

Edition statement supplied by publisher.

On One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest -- Biography of Ken Kesey -- The literary, historical, and cultural contexts of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest -- Ratched and McMurphy: a survey of critical commentary on the central characters of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest -- "Pluralist" criticism, "practical" criticism, and Ken Kesey's Cuckoo's Nest -- Grapes in the nest : The Grapes of Wrath and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest -- "Minority" characters in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest: Bromden, the African American aides, and women -- Kesey's transcendental gothic: traces of nineteenth-century American romanticism in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest -- One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Southwestern humor, and the roles of Bromden and McMurphy -- Momism and 'beset manhood': sex-role theory in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest -- "You get your visions through whatever gate you're granted": gates and gatekeepers in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest -- america's minorities in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest -- Ken Kesey and his kosmic konvergence machine: a personal reminiscence -- One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest: a survey of commentary on the film adaptation -- Ken Kesey's comments on One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest -- One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest: a survey of commentary on major themes, important techniques, subsidiary characters, and other issues -- Chronology of Ken Kesey's life -- Works by Ken Kesey.