A Patronus for the Patients

Here is an exert from J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

“‘They call it the Dementor’s Kiss,” said Lupin, with a slightly twisted smile. “It’s what dementors do to those they wish to destroy utterly... they... suck out his soul.”

Harry accidentally spat out a bit of butterbeer.

“What--they kill--?”

“Oh no,” said Lupin. “Much worse than that. You can exist without your soul, you know, as long as your brain and heart are still working. But you’ll have no sense of self anymore, no memory, no... anything. There’s no chance at all of recovery. You’ll just-- exist. As an empty shell. And your soul is gone forever... lost”’ (Rowling 247)

Sound familiar?

A dementor

As I read over where McMurphy received a lobotomy, I instantly thought about Harry Potter and the Dementor’s Kiss (1). I contemplated the parallels for quite awhile. After McMurphy’s lobotomy, he basically becomes an empty shell, a human without a soul, just like a recipient of a Dementor’s Kiss. However I believe that a big difference between these two books is the ability for Harry, who the dementors also attack, to produce a patronus (2). Harry spends quite a lot of time and energy learning this particular defense

McMurphy, who lived in an oppressive mental institution, did not have the chance to produce any type of patronus to protect him from his lobotomy. He tried to win. He spent time and energy also, but the Nurse won. She gave him a fate worse than death; she destroyed him utterly.

An especially powerful patronus
can protect from large amounts
of dementors

But then I realized that even though McMurphy, a source of energy, light, and good, could not face the wrath of his own dementors, he acted as a patronus for the other patients. He shielded them from the Nurse and her evil ways. He willingly faced the dark side, despite the consequences, in order to give everyone else a chance. It had to be him; only only a person as vibrant as him could have held back the dementors so that the others could regain their happiness and leave their depressive state. For this reason, he will always be a hero in my eyes.

Note: For those who do not follow Harry Potter (though I do not know why?), I have included some basic definitions, courtesy of the Harry Potter Wiki.
http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page
(1) A Dementor is a dark creature, considered one of the foulest to inhabit the world. Dementors feed off human happiness, and thus cause depression and despair to anyone near them.They can also consume a person's soul, leaving their victims in a permanent vegetative state, and thus are often referred to as "soul-sucking fiends."
(2) A Patronus Charm is an insubstantial animal protector created by the advanced Patronus Charm spell, and one way to defend against Dementors and certain other Dark creatures. The spell requires the use of a wand, concentration on a powerfully happy memory, and the incantation "Expecto Patronum".