Antagonist

Character Role Analysis

Nurse Ratched

Nurse Ratched is locked into a fierce competition for power and position with none other than our hero, Randle McMurphy. Her hatred for the patients, her insistence on enforcing the silliest of rules just to maintain her control, and her unwillingness to "play fair" makes her the enemy of all the men on the ward. She is further made into a villain by abusing her power; when she has a disagreement with a patient, she sends him off to electroshock therapy or to get a lobotomy. Though she accuses McMurphy of playing God, clearly Nurse Ratched is the one playing with lives.