What does McMurphy symbolize?
Also asked, what is McMurphy diagnosed with?
McMurphy shows many signs and symptoms of antisocial personality disorder. Several times throughout One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, McMurphy showed such characteristics. For example, twice McMurphy broke the glass in the nurses' station window when he didn't agree with Nurse Ratched's decisions (Kesey 172, 176).
Also Know, what happens to McMurphy?
Billy becomes hysterical and commits suicide by cutting his throat. McMurphy attacks Ratched, ripping open the front of her dress and attempting to strangle her. Bromden suffocates McMurphy in his bed, enabling him to die with some dignity rather than live as a symbol of Ratched's power.
“McMurphy helps the people in the ward find their way back from the fog and return back to the real world” (Lupack). McMurphy's laughter and jokes, along with his personality, cause a great change in the patients of the ward and he helps them cure their “mental illness”.