The story of One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest takes place in a mental institution in the Pacific Northwest. Nurse Ratched, also known as "big nurse" dominates the institution. She thrives on being in control and gives off an impression that no one could ever take away her power. In the beginning of the novel the appearance of a new patient slowly begins to show that behind her inhuman actions there is some great instability. Randall Patrick McMurphy is the new face in the mental home. His loud entrance and actions show that he has great energy and lack of control. Right off the bat it is clear that there will be a great amount of tension and arguments between Nurse Ratched and McMurphy. Anarchy and disobedience is what McMurphy represents, while nurse Ratched represents rules and order. McMurphy is the protagonist in the novel where as the nurse is the antagonist. A struggle for power and attention is what will come about between the nurse and McMurphy, and it is hard to tell who will win.
McMurphy's first group meeting made him analyze Nurse Ratchid and figure out what she was all about. After the meeting he shared with Harding that he viewed the meetings as a "pecking-party" in which each of the patients turn on each other. Deep down Harding agreed with what McMurphy was saying. He tells McMurphy that the patients are rabbits who cannot adjust to their rabbithood and need Nurse Ratched to show them their place. McMurphy then bets him that he can get Nurse Ratched to crack within a week. McMurphy did not want anyone to have power over him, especially Nurse Ratched. By appearing in font of the nurse only wearing a towel, and threatening to drop it, it shows her first signs of strain and tension between the two of them. "Then Mcmurphy takes to whistling "Sweet Georgia Brown," and the nurse looks away from the black boy just in time. Now she's madder and more frustrated than ever, madder"n I ever saw her get.