In Ken Kesey's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, women are depicted primarily as threatening or even terrifying figures. Emasculation is brought up time and time again by Chief Bromden and McMurphy in describing

the mental abuse Nurse Ratched inflicts upon the patients. Castration is repeatedly spoken of in regards to the suffering of the patients.

The male patients' fear of women is one of this novel's most apparent thematic concepts. This illustration of women stays entact with exception of the prostitutes whose sexuality is seen as a symbol of freedom. For example, timid Billy Bibbit is tragically trapped in a childhood state on account of his mother who will not allow him to grow up or develop sexually. However, by having his first sexual encounter with Candy, a prostitute, the act created a sense of confidence that Billy had been devoid of essentially his entire life. His...