The Perfect Storm

This metaphor might aptly describe Ken Kesey's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. In fact, his own "cuckoo's nest" metaphor isn't too bad, either. Kesey borrowed his title from a folk rhyme that has a variety of versions and no known author. See this link for some of the different versions of the rhyme.

Somehow, the image of "The Perfect Storm" came to me when I thought about how to introduce this book to the class. I was playing around with nautical jargon, like how we might escape languishing in the "doldrums" of winter by willfully venturing into the "maelstrom" of this dark but exciting book. I first decided to teach Cuckoo's Nest a few years ago to "wrap up" (what a boring image) our study of prose fiction. It's a book that has everything. A schizophrenic narrator who tells "the truth, even if it really didn't happen." A wild, anti-establishment anti-hero who became the archtype for the stereotyped copies that would follow him. A powerful feminine foil who could teach Big Brother some things about CONTROL. Language full of unique images and unbelievably real description that will make you say to yourself, "Now I know EXACTLY what he means." When all of this comes together in a book, it's a perfect storm. Some of you may not be "up to" the voyage, knowing how safe we sometimes like our plots, characters, language, and belief systems. But we're headed out, full speed ahead. We're going to cast our nets and see if we make a last big catch before we head back into safer, if not shallower, waters for the remainder of the year.