Who explains the Therapeutic Community concept to McMurphy?

• A. Dr. Spivey
• B. Chief Bromden
• C. Harding
• D. Nurse Ratched

Answer: (D)

The idea behind a Therapeutic Community is that the ward itself functions as a coordinated, supervised social environment where routines, rules, and group dynamics guide patients toward rehabilitation and steadier behavior. Nurse Ratched explains this approach to McMurphy, presenting the ward’s daily structure, group sessions, and collective expectations as the method by which everyone is helped to improve. She uses that framing to justify her authority and to persuade McMurphy to conform, portraying control and order as parts of a beneficial, therapeutic plan. Although other characters engage with therapy in various ways, it’s Nurse Ratched who articulates the concept to him and embodies the institution’s use of therapy as a means of control.