Authority is “the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience.” I’ve experienced many forms of authority throughout my life, from many different people, that all fall under the umbrella of being adults. As children, we are told that adults should be met with respect and have the right to exercise their authority over us when the situation calls for it. My experience with authority has been very mixed throughout my seventeen years of living, I usually fall into line when met with most forms of authority. The book, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, has various alternate perspectives on how to adapt to authority.

Throughout the book Nurse Ratched serves as the leading authority over the ward, seeming to have connections to the supervisor, a sense of control over everyone, and the power to do as she pleases. The two characters that embody the responses to authority are McMurphy and Harding, who often conflict with each other due to having different views. McMurphy is against leading authority while Harding fully accepts and supports it, both disgusting their viewpoints on her authority in long detail. On page 54 Harding states, “Our dear Miss Rached? Our sweet, smiling, tender angel of mercy, Mother Ratched, a ball cutter? Why, My friend, that’s most unlikely.” To me, this sounds like what I remember from my mother being like a parental authority that made me feel safe. That safety she gave off was why following her authority was easy because I knew that following someone I trusted wouldn’t hurt me or have any consequences. The quote is also interesting to me because I know that others don’t feel the same way about her. Submitting due to fear of her, which also connects me back to my parents. How it wasn’t a fear of them but a fear of what could happen to me, fear of being punished, a fear of negative consequences.

McMurphy has played a very significant role since his introduction, almost always being the cause of something interesting happening in the ward. At first, he seemed rather carefree and joyful about being in the ward, disrupting the hierarchy of control. Although he changed once he learned that the nurse could extend his time even further he started behaving. On page 164, he confronts Harding and others by asking, “It’s interesting to me that you bums didn’t tell me what a risk I was running into…” This reminds me of the education system, how there’s always something a teacher can say or do to enforce their authority. An example of this would be when a parent is called, or detention is threatened. I’ve never been a fan of consequences, more so any punishment that takes things away from me. The act of something being taken from you that you have no power to get back is why authority through fear is so powerful. I’ve gotten many things taken from me growing up and they’ve all been things I could get back, items that give me joy. When I look at McMurphy’s situation he could point to his sentence which is time he can never get back, therefore his incentive to behave would be much greater.

Respecting authority has alway been a choice, everyone makes it every day when we decide to obey the law. In the Ward the characters have very limited options which causes them to often go the easy way out, as Harding chooses to do, obey the authority and keep it moving. I’ve never truly thought to defy authority because I have no reason too, but through looking at the resident ward members I understand why defiance would strike out in some, mostly McMurphy. On page 176, McMurphy snaps and breaks the window with his bare fist, blood trickling down his hand while he speaks with Nurse Ratched. This symbolizes that everyone has a breaking point when it comes to authority. I remember getting in trouble with my father and giving all my energy worrying about what he’ll do or what he’ll take away, all of a sudden I don’t care anymore. It gets to the point where they’ve taken so much from you that there’s no real fear of consequence anymore because you have nothing left. I fear that eventually due how cornered every patient is at the ward it’ll eventually cause anarchy anarchy among the ward.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Has opened my eyes to a new view on authority, I’ve been fortunate enough to have a kind nurturing authority growing up, one that I felt comfortable submitting too. This book made me question how far is too far? When is it alright to defy authority? And, What is the appropriate way to combat toxic authority? I would never anything as extreme as in the book but I know one day authority and I will bud heads, and that makes me worried about the consequences.

Sound Resonance

Animal I Have Become - Three Days Grace

This song paints a picture of the darker side of humanity in all of us, that we all have made choices in our lives that depict us as animals. A time and place where we let the negative aspects of our personality shine through us. This song is about being in that dark place and asking for help getting out of it. Some notable lyrics are “Somebody get me through this nightmare, I can’t control myself” and “So what if you can see the darkest side of me? No one would ever change this animal I have become.” In chapter 13 of The Handmaid’s Tale, When Jaime is relieved that she has been taken advantage of by multiple men, Aunt Helena and the other handmaids blame her for it. On page 72 it reads “Her fault, her fault, her fault, we chant in unison. Who led them on? Aunt Helena beams pleased with us. She did. She did. She did.” What stood out to me was when Offred reflected on their actions later down the page. “We meant it, which was the bad part. I used to think well of myself. I didn’t then.” This connects to the song’s negative perception of one’s self and the hopelessness of becoming better than you are.

Hellbent - Mystery Skulls

Hellbent is all about desires for pleasure and doing what you’re not supposed to, although the lyrics are short they do express a crystal clear view of the message in this song. For example, the lyrics “ I’ve been hellbent, baby. Hellbent on makin’ you love me, too. Even though not what I’m supposed to do. I don’t give a damn.” When thinking of The Handmaid’s Tale, the song reflects what happens in chapter 17 very well. After Offred and Nick break the rules and start kissing intimately, she thinks “It’s so good, to be touched by someone, to be felt so greedily, to feel so greedy.” On page 99. The act of pursuing What you want and having a mutual desire for pleasure mirrors the song and this chapter.

Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing - Set It Off

Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing is all about being a danger, an outlier among the rest, someone coming off as harmless but is a danger. This song could portray Moria from the Aunt’s perspective, about her being a black sheep among the handmaids, how she’s the most dangerous and defective out of them all. The song goes over many themes of betrayal, some notable lyrics are “Oh my god, who am I kidding? Now, let’s not get overzealous here. You’ve always been a huge piece of shit.” These lyrics are reflected in chapter 22 when Offred tries to reenact Moria’s escape attempt, Aunt Elizapteh may harbor most of these feelings especially since she was the one Moria threatened. The song further resonates with Moria because there have been so many times when she has been a nuisance for a while, evidently by her faking sickness in a previous chapter. Overall the song demonstrates the relationship between authority in Gilead and Moria.

Poker Face - Lady Gaga

Poker Face is a very popular song, sung by Lady Gaga herself, about how she manipulates a man to gain what she wants. Similar to the relationship between Offred and The Commander, how she uses him for information while she just has to play her part, This is brought to life in chapter 32 when the Commander is drunk. Proven when she thinks on page 210 “It’s difficult for me to believe I have any power over him, of any sort, but I do; although it’s of an equivocal kind.” This made me think of the lyrics “Love game intuition, play the cards with spades to start, And after he’s been hooked, I’ll play the one that’s on his heart.” This is where the song and the book split because they both hold the idea of power over men to get what they want but have different mindsets about that power. Lady Gaga is more confident in her ability to get what she wants, seeing that it isn’t life or death for her. While Offread is fighting for her life trying to get all the answers she can get. Almost as if this is a card game and Offread is playing for her life while Lady Gaga is playing for fun.

Bumpy Ride - Mohombi

Bumpy Ride is a song of lust and the domination of one partner over another, the kind of song that would be played at a club. The setting in chapter 37 mashes very well with the song because it is a place for high members of this society to feel highly of themselves by flaunting power and women. The lyrics that fit best with this would be “Tell me, who can love you? (Nobody) Hold you? (Nobody) Make your body wine like me, You’ll never find someone like me.” When the commander goes on to fill his ego and shows off Offread to his friends, which then she speculates on page 236 “Perhaps he’s reached the state of intoxication which power is said to inspire…” The power to do what you want and be the best at what you do can be seen as a Lust for power which reflects both this chapter and this song.

In chapter 17, Offred is sneaking downstairs because of her need to take something to feel noticed, she then encounters Nick who sweeps her off her feet and the two almost do something that cost them their lives.

As I read “I think about the hanged men, hooked on the stairs, before I dissolve entirely.” on page 99, This part resonates with me because the feeling of doing something you know was wrong puts a certain fear in you. Like Offred, I’ve had moments where I was too focused on what I wanted at that moment to see what could’ve happened due to my actions. Over the past few chapters, I’ve noticed that the limitations of this society are mostly based on the Bible and Christianity pushed to the extreme. Ideals are twisted into something that could be manipulated by the higher-ups in Gilead, not allowing women to express who they truly are. I have had moments where I had to hold back certain parts of myself for fear of what others might think or judge me. Moments like Offred where I just wanted to be who I was, ignoring any consequences, wanting the feeling to express ourselves freely.

What connected me to Offred was the quote “It’s so good, to be touched by someone, to be felt so greedily, to feel so greedy. Luke, you’d know, you’d understand. It’s you here, in another body. Bullshit.” On page 99. There have been so many times that justification plagued my mind, especially when I did something I knew I shouldn’t have done. The act of lying to one’s self just to come up with a reason is so real to me, especially since we know how important Luke is to Offred. The father of her child and her husband, Luke occupies her thoughts when she thinks to herself it’s very apparent that she loves him. For her to turn to another man and almost give in to her wants, I think of my mother. The way I’d blatantly disobey her just to fill my own heart, whether that be doing something behind her back, lying to her, or anything else. I knew I could’ve just not done those things but chose to anyway. I always loved her no matter the situation but in those instances, I was focused on how I was feeling at that very moment. Now that I can see her anymore I empathize with Offred because she doesn’t know the state that Luke is in. I feel as if we both took the ones we loved for granted and now have to live with the fact that times have changed and we have to adapt to these changes.

The want for attention makes me think of the quote “I want Luke here so badly. I want to be held and told my name. I want to be valued, in ways that I am not: I want to be more than valued.” Written on page 98, I felt as if this section was about the need to feel needed or wanted, we as humans are social creatures who desire to be with people who will acknowledge us and accept us. I often feel that it is something you want to be known for, but at the same time too embarrassing to say. Offred has been denied any form of affection and reassurance and has been put in a state of loneliness that has been piled up negatively for however long these laws have been made. I have had times where I feel intense loneliness and in those times I’ve felt very desperate to have any kind of connection. I have an amazing support system and it would be a nightmare for them to be taken away from me. In that scenario, I can see why the rules would seem so small in her interaction with Nick. If that fulfillment could be satisfied for even a moment it would all be worth it.

Few people can say they understand what Offred has been through since her situations were pushed to the extreme for the narrative. However, throughout all of her experiences, there is always something we could connect to, Especially when it comes to the interactions with other people and our basic human needs. To be accepted for who we are is all anyone ever wants and it’s that want that could get us into trouble, Humans are easy to take apart if you know what to look for. We all want to feel Desired.

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