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Let's Get Breakfast

"...writing a meal scene is so difficult, and so inherently uninteresting, that there really needs to be some compelling reason to include one in the story" (Foster 8). Eating in and of itself is really boring. There is a reason nobody goes out to lunch alone, yea the food may be good but you get bored with just eating. In order for the act of consuming sustenance to be mildly interesting, something big has to be going on. In One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, they go into quite a bit of detail about the daily lives and schedule of the people living there, but they never brought up meals until page 102.

This is McMurphy's first breakfast in the ward. It begins with his raving about the quality of the food, how it is a massive improvement over the food he was given while working in the fields, increasing the probability of him being there on purpose. Next it talks about how the clock has slowed. This shows how the narrative of a set schedule within the ward could be false. Additionally it calls into question the narration of the story, if the time is wrong then what else could be wrong? Lastly this section has McMurphy launching a pad of butter onto the wall, trying to hit the clock. He does this stunt while the black boys are out of the room and loses some money for missing. This action reinforces his willingness to subvert ward policy on gambling, as well as an urge to cause little bits of trouble wherever he can throughout the day.

Overall this scene shows some of the dynamics between McMurphy's antics and the rest of the ward, with everyone watching but nobody ratting him out willingly. Additionally it establishes the idea that McMurphy can get away with little things all he wants without repercussions for the time being. It shows him playing with the power balance, edging the line between trouble and order.

Comments

  1. I found this Chapter of Foster's novel very interesting. It is very cool to see it applied to so many different novels. It can be seen in very powerful feasts or in undramatic small meals. Meal scenes are always profoundly influential on connections between individuals. It is challenging to relate the eating scenes in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's nest to comunion. There seems to be a lot of tension in this novel. Good work analysing the scene!

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    Replies
    1. Joel, I too was very excited by that chapter in Foster's novel. It made me think about the profound influence important stories or situations can have upon the lives of characters in stories we read. Communion seems to be deeply ingrained enough into our heads that we see it everywhere. Good work yourself!

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  2. This scene is especially interesting when compared to the 'last supper' that they throw later. McMurphy's antics escalate and escalate.

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