What action by McMurphy triggers Doctor Spivey to stand up to Nurse Ratched?

What action by McMurphy triggers Doctor Spivey to stand up to Nurse Ratched?

• A. McMurphy organizes a basketball team and asks to bring a ball back to the ward.
• B. McMurphy complains about meals.
• C. McMurphy demands extra payments.
• D. McMurphy asks to leave the ward.

Answer: (A)

Defying the ward’s rigid rules and rallying the patients to act is what prompts Dr. Spivey to push back against Nurse Ratched. When McMurphy organizes a basketball game and asks to bring a ball back to the ward, he turns quiet resentment into a tangible, collective challenge to the authority on the ward. This shows Spivey that the patients can push back and that Nurse Ratched’s control is not unassailable, which motivates him to stand up to her. The other actions—complaining about meals, demanding extra payments, or asking to leave the ward—do not create the same moment of organized resistance that directly confronts the power dynamic between Nurse Ratched and the patients.

Defying the ward’s rigid rules and rallying the patients to act is what prompts Dr. Spivey to push back against Nurse Ratched. When McMurphy organizes a basketball game and asks to bring a ball back to the ward, he turns quiet resentment into a tangible, collective challenge to the authority on the ward. This shows Spivey that the patients can push back and that Nurse Ratched’s control is not unassailable, which motivates him to stand up to her. The other actions—complaining about meals, demanding extra payments, or asking to leave the ward—do not create the same moment of organized resistance that directly confronts the power dynamic between Nurse Ratched and the patients.