One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

Book · 6 characters · 622 quotes · 1962

Quotes from One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

C
"We are all puppets on strings."
Chief Bromden Freedom
C
"Laughter is the best medicine in this place."
Cheswick Health
R
"I aint no criminal, I'm just a businessman."
Randle McMurphy Humor
C
"Fear's a tool they use to keep you down."
Chief Bromden Fear
C
"We're all crazy here."
Cheswick Wisdom
R
"Man, I tried."
Randle McMurphy Perseverance
C
"The fighting's real, but the outcome's predetermined."
Chief Bromden
B
"Everybody's got to be somebody."
Billy Bibbit
N
"You have to laugh at the things that hurt you."
Nurse Ratched Humor
R
"I'm not just an inmate; I'm a gambler."
Randle McMurphy Courage
C
"The Combine is real, but it's not as real as you think it is."
Chief Bromden Truth
C
"A man who agrees to everything is useful to no one."
Chief Bromden Wisdom
R
"It's them or us, and I have not lost yet."
Randle McMurphy Power
R
"Freedom tastes sweeter when stolen from the jailer."
Randle McMurphy Freedom
R
"To accept the system is to accept defeat."
Randle McMurphy Freedom
R
"Some men need to fight to prove they're alive."
Randle McMurphy Strength
R
"A man confined is only half a man."
Randle McMurphy Freedom
R
"To lose the ability to laugh is to lose humanity itself."
Randle McMurphy Humor
B
"I've always been a little mad, I think."
Billy Bibbit Truth
R
"A man who fights for what he believes in, that's a free man."
Randle McMurphy Freedom
R
"I'm not just talking about not letting an irresponsible fool like me near the top, I'm talking about somebody with fifty thousand dollars in his checking account."
Randle McMurphy Power
R
"Man, when you lose your laugh you lose your footing."
Randle McMurphy Humor
B
"The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that very existence is an act of rebellion."
Billy Bibbit Freedom
R
"You can't advise somebody to be brave if they're not naturally brave."
Randle McMurphy Courage
R
"I came in here to live, not just exist."
Randle McMurphy Life
R
"Sometimes the craziest thing you can do is be yourself."
Randle McMurphy
R
"They broke something inside me, but they couldn't break my spirit."
Randle McMurphy Strength
C
"The real insanity is out there, not in here."
Chief Bromden Truth
C
"Fighting the system only makes it stronger."
Cheswick Philosophy
N
"Order and routine are what keep society functioning."
Nurse Ratched Leadership