One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey #2

In my last post I briefly mentioned the fog that surrounded Chief Bromden, and I would like to elaborate on that a little more.
Insanity takes many forms in this book, and for Chief his insanity is represented by a fog that he sees in his mind. The fog usually overcomes him whenever he is on medication, or after he has received Electro Shock Treatment (EST). Chief used to be afraid to get lost in the fog; so afraid that he would take to yelling just so the nurses and aides could "find him", when in reality he wasn't really gone. This was not received well, and every time it happened he would end up back at the EST door and would be engulfed in fog once more. I think the reason the Chief fears the fog so much is because it reminds him of when he used to be in the army. When the planes would land, they would be surrounded by a man made fog so they could remain hidden from the enemy. Chief, while having a flashback, says that he was always scared he was going to get lost in it. He would look so hard that when he finally saw something it would be clearer than he had ever seen something in his life. I think the fog in the asylum reminds him of that and he is scared to get lost in it. However, after a while Chief discovers that he likes to hide in the fog. He usually gets ignored when he is in it, and he thinks that nobody can see him because it's so cloudy, so he just minds his own business. He decided that it's not so bad to get lost in the fog after all.
I like that his insanity is represented by something the reader can keep track of. And by that I mean, it's something you can realize is going away little by little. The more McMurphy gives him strength, the more the fog goes away. One night Chief even goes over toward the window in the ward and looks out, for what seems like the first time he has done this in a very long time, and he sees a dog. He notices things, he begins laughing, he breaks his silence and talks about his life to McMurphy. After a while he even starts talking to the other guys on the ward, and this shows how much he has transformed throughout the novel. He gets his confidence and identity back, and in the end the fog is lifted for good. McMurphy sacrifices himself to give Chief the strength to escape the asylum and return to the world outside.