One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest 2

By the end of Part 1, I would say that McMurphy is winning the rivalry. By standing up to the policies and regulations and bringing other patients along with him, he is making the Big Nurse very angry and very nervous. This is seen when the Nurse is "red and swelling like she'll blow apart any second" after McMurphy makes her angry, and how she starts sort of twitching with that "sideways jerk of her head".

I think the Chief is really showing signs of mental illness. He seems to be hallucinating a lot and sort of babbling on about side stories. As readers we don't know what's really happening in the story. He talks a lot about fog and how he's floating in it and trying not to get lost in it, but there isn't really any fog in the room. McMurphy has made the Chief have hope, but he also seems to be lost in his own world even more. His hope was shown when he raised his hand and contributed to the rebellion against the Big Nurse.

I am currently rooting for McMurphy. The Big Nurse is abusive and controlling and McMurphy is the only one willing to stand up to it.