My Research on Billy Bibbit, Martini, Chief Brombden and Randle McMurphy from the Movie One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest

Abstract

The following paper is my research on Billy Bibbit, Martini, Chief Brombden, and Randle McMurphy, three major characters in the movie, "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest". Both are patients in a hospital for the mentally ill and suffer from diseases only few have. My research includes stuttering, hallucinations, and the signs of being a psychopath. All three men show signs of their illness within the movie. Billy Bibbit is diagnosed with his horrible speech impediment. McMurphy is sent from his work camp for being labeled a psychopath although he suffers from hallucinations. Martini is in the ward for hallucinations and possibly slight autism. Chief Brombden also shows signs of a schizophrenic and psychopath. My research goes on to talk about these three mental illnesses in death and in relation to their behaviors throughout the movie.

In the movie "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest", the setting takes place in a metal hospital where the main character, Randall McMurphy, has just been checked in at. Throughout the movie you meet characters with all sorts of disabilities. Some have stuttering, hallucinations, or even autism. Three main characters whose disabilities stood out to me where Randall McMurphy, Billy Bibbit, Chief Brombden, and Martini.

Randall Murphy has been sent there from his work because they thought he was crazy, unstable, and showed signs of a schizophrenic. When he first arrived he thinks he is just there for an evaluation but later finds out that he cannot leave until the doctors let him. Murphy doesn't feel like he belongs there with " a bunch of lunatics" ("One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"). He even boasts about his non traditional "too much fightin' and fuckin'" lifestyle that he thinks might've landed him there ("One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"). As Murphy adjusts to his new home, he tries to befriend the other patients on his floor. He joins in on their gambling card games and therapy sessions.

One of the first things you notice about Murphy is his anger and erratic behavior whether he is excited or upset. For example, he got extremely excited and hyper when trying to teach Chief how to shoot a basketball and became highly upset and angry when Martini would repeatedly ask him questions during a game of cards. This shows common signs of having schizophrenia (Kosslen, Roseenberg). Schizophrenia is a servers mental disorder that affects behavior and thinking. Some symptoms include abnormal behavior, delusions, hallucinations, and more (Mayo Clinic). Murphys random outbursts of anger or excitement could diagnose him as a schizophrenic.

Chief Brombden also shows signs of a schizophrenic. His trick of staying quiet and not talking makes everybody think he is a dumb Indian. In reality, he is very negative and refuses to affiliate himself with the other men on his floor. When he suffocates Murphy to death, his rational and abnormal behavior show how he is self-centered. 

Treatment for a schizophrenic include antidepressants, anti-anxiety drugs, or different types of therapy. If severe enough, hospitalization is needed if the patient is dangerous to themselves or others (Mayo Clinic). Murphy was a dangerous schizophrenic who would have bursts of anger and violence.

Murphys hallucinations are also portrayed in the movie. When harassing Nurse Ratched about turning on the television to watch The World Series Baseball Game, his behavior becomes very angry towards. At first, she tells him how he needs to have the majority vote while he only has Cheswick on his side. When they meet again during their therapy session the next day, Murphy begs Nurse Ratched to vote again. This time he has all nine votes of the men in his therapy session. Ratched tricks him in saying that he needs to have the majority vote of the entire floor, not just the men in his therapy session. There are eighteen men on the floor meaning that the voting is tied. Ratched adjourns the meeting but Murphy goes on a rampage and desperately asks the rest of the men to vote to turn the television on. At last, Chief Brombden raises his hand. Behind the glass door, Nurse Ratched acts as if she turns the television on, but she doesn't. Murphy acts as if it is on and begins to report the baseball game and get excited over home runs and catching fly balls. He is hallucinating and thinks he sees that the television is actually on and showing the baseball game. The rest of the men on the floor slowly gather around him and become excited and act as if they're watching the game as well. In reality, all of them are hallucinated that they think the television is actually on ("One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest").

Hallucinations are a symptom of schizophrenia. Symptoms include hearing voices or seeing things that aren't there. In Murphys situation, this would be how he acted like the television was showing the baseball game, but in reality it was not. To treat Murphy for his hallucinations, an EEG or MRI would show an imagine if the brain and how it differs from the normal brain. These may show brain tumors or even if the patient has schizophrenia. Treatment includes a prescription of Nuplazid or going to therapy (Lava).

Billy Bibbit, a young man on the same floor as Murphy and Chief, has a severe stuttering problem. Throughout the movie he has trouble speaking and it takes him a while to say certain words or sentences. Stuttering is a defect in the fluency of speech. These disruptions in speech are called "disfluencies". In Billy's case, he suffers from part-word repetition. This means he would repeat part of a word for a moment until he could get the entire word out. Treatments include sessions that help teach Billy how to slow down or smoothen his words. Stuttering is a behavioral problem which means that he has either taught himself that or mimicked it and now lives with it and can't speak normally (ASHA). Speech therapy can help Billy slow down his speaking so he doesn't stutter much if at all.

Billy is also suicidal. He kills himself after he is caught by Nurse Ratched in bed with Candy, a friend of Murphys who they snuck in the night before. Ratched threatens to tell Billy's mother what happened since she is close friends with her. This throws Billy into a huge tantrum as doctors drag him into an office. When they open the door, they find Billy bleeding to death on the floor after slicing his common carotid artery with a piece of glass. Billy immediately dies for excessive blood loss ("One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"). Treatments for his suicidal behavior include anti-depressants, life-style changes, or therapy. Many go to therapy while others sadly fall to alcohol or drugs which are basically over-the-counter anti-depressants. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) teaches patients how to work through stressful life events. It can also help replace negative thoughts with positive ones (Khan). Life-style changes for Billy could include becoming more social. He becomes very aroused when they plan an escape from the hospital or when he is with Candy. Billy becomes suicidal when Nurse Ratched threatens to tell Billy's mother how she found him that morning in bed with Candy.

Martini is another character I found diagnosable in the movie. At first, I thought he was autistic due to his childlike manner. While watching more of the movie, Martini is a schizophrenic with mild autism. Throughout the movie, Martini tries to act like one of the guys by always playing cards with them or joining in on their shenanigans. Murphy gets highly upset with him during one card game as he keeps repeating himself and asking Murohy if it is his turn. Murphy gets angry and violent and leaves the table. Martinis voice and actions lead me to think he is somewhere on the autism spectrum.

Autism is a development disability that affects social, communication, and behavioral challenges. This can include speech, childlike behavior, or dangerous anger outburst when in social settings (CDC). For Martini, he acted like a child when he was well over twenty years old. His tone would mimic that of a child and was not mature. When betting in card games, Martini would break the cigarettes in half and sometimes build structures with them. This is a sign of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Although the degree of his autism cannot be determined without testing, it is easy to confer that he may be on the spectrum.

Treatments for ASD patients include different types of therapy. Some types include Behavior and Communication Approaches, Dietary Approaches, and limited medication. Most help patients with behavior issues. While Martini was not violent when put in different situations, his childlike manners put him in the spectrum (CDC). During the setting of the movie, autism was not studied much and many abandoned autism patients at hospitals and mental institutes thinking that they were crazy. Although not crazy, a mental hospital was more than likely the safest place for Martini.

In total, this movie was great and educational to learn about how different people act and how there are many different mental disorders. A lot of them had schizophrenia, just in various forms. Many think that patients in mental hospitals are crazy and have angry behaviors. The movie portrays some of the men having random angry outbursts but most of the other men are quiet and keep to themselves. In conclusion, I found the movie eye opening and loved watching it.

References

• ASHA. (n.d.). Stuttering. Retrieved December 11, 2016, from http://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/stuttering/
• CDC. (2015). Treatment. Retrieved December 12, 2016, from https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/treatment.html
• Forman, M. (Director). (1975). One flew over the cuckoo's nest [Motion picture on DVD]. New York, NY: MGM/United Artists Entertainment.
• Kahn, April. "Suicide and Suicidal Behavior." Healthline. Ed. Timothy Legg PhD. N.p., 27 Jan. 2016. Web. 12 Dec. 2016.
• Kosslyn, S. M., & Rosenberg, R. S. (n.d.). Psychological Disorders. In Introducing Psychology (4th ed., pp. 399-440). Pearson Education.
• Lava, MD, N. (Ed.). (2016, June 25). What Are Hallucinations? Types, Causes, and Treatments of Hallucinations. Retrieved December 11, 2016, from http://www.webmd.com/brain/what-are-hallucinations
• Mayo Clinic Staff Print. (2016, October 11). Schizophrenia. Retrieved December 12, 2016, from http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/schizophrenia/symptoms-causes/dxc-20253198

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