A Clockwork Orange Essay, Research Paper
TASK ? ? To what extent does Alex have his own freedom of thought??A Clockwork Orange? by Anthony Burgess follows the life of a young juvenile delinquent by the name of Alex. Throughout the novel we learn in depth about the young protagonist, Alex, including his love for music and his apparent passion toward violence. Burgess uses bizarre, yet apt language choice in this novel which helps you relate to the main character in an easier manner, hence improving the appeal and success of this text. The novel deals with varying issues however the main theme of the novel is the idea of how much freedom of thought Alex has and therefore this will be my area of focus for my essay.
Immediately after the first few lines we find out the novel is written in first person narrative. I found this a very intelligent use of language and structure by Burgess as the manner in which he has written this relates exactly to the character. Very seldom does Alex use ?normal? language and I think this is because he has complete freedom of thought and he wants to have his own language that only his friends and him can understand.
In my opinion the style and structure of this novel is extremely important to the understanding of the text. Alex goes through three main changes as a character, and this is reflected in the way Burgess has structured the novel. The novel is split into three sections, each describing a significant chapter in Alex?s life. An example of this is the idea of the book revolving ?full circle?. In 20 chapters Alex has completely changed, but at the start of chapter 21 the novel begins the exact same as it did at chapter one. Alex revisits the place called HOME and him and his new ?droogs? commit another unprovoked attack, however this time something has changed. Alex has matured and basically decides he doesn?t want this life anymore and the reason why ? he has matured and comes to his senses. So the reader begins to feel sorry for Alex ? after all what is a life without any choice?
? Goodness comes from with, 6655321, goodness is something chosen, he who cant choose, ceases to be a man?
Burgess has deliberately intended the thoughts and feelings of the reader to sway during the novel. As the novel progresses Alex looses his choice ? consequently becoming ? A Clockwork Orange?, which changes the reader?s attitude towards him. I feel this therefore relates to the theme of Alex?s freedom of thought because after undergoing ?the ludovico?s technique? Alex looses all of this and effectively becomes a walking, talking government experiment. In my opinion Burgess superbly sculpts this idea and so the reader?s feelings for Alex change.
In the beginning of the novel Alex is the practitioner of nothing but violent acts, who spends his nights with his “droogs”, terrorizing the public with their acts of “ultra violence” and engaging in the old “in-out, in-out”. He beats the elderly, fights other gangs with his “britva”, robs stores, breaks into houses, rapes young girls, drinks milk laced with drugs and is eventually even convicted of murder. Burgess portrays the life of the young immature Alex, as a series of mostly evil events. As the reader is embroiled in Alex?s life he/she begins to feel nothing but hatred towards Alex and this is mainly down to the disgusting and explicit manner in which they are described.
? O, my brothers, while I untrussed and got ready for the plunge. Plunging I could slooshy cries of agony?
For me I feel this is a very significant point. Burgess has summed up Alex as a whole in the language he has used here. The quote is actually describing Alex as he prepares perform the ?old in-out in-out? (rape) on a young women. I feel the word ?plunge? is used to great success. It has very negative connotations and shows the reader truly how violent Alex is at this stage of the novel. Also I feel the manner in which I imagine Alex saying this is imperative. I feel it is said with a zealous tone, again telling the reader a lot about how Alex thinks and feels toward violence.
After studying this text I went through many thoughts and feelings towards the young protagonist of Alex. At first it doesn?t seem as if Alex can change and it?s as if he doesn?t want to ? no one is in control of him and at it seems nothing can change him. However after close examination of the passage I found certain instances where signs of a different Alex shone through.
? And, my brothers, it was real satisfaction to me to waltz ? left two three, right two three ?
This is a modus operandi (technique) is one for which Burgess must be credited for. The situation being described is when Alex is involved in an attack on a defenseless man. What I find unusual, yet pertinent about this piece of text is the manner in which Burgess relates Alex?s two loves, music and violence. I think this therefore presents the question of could music help change Alex. Yes! Because he has his all-important freedom of thought. The possibility of change is always there at the beginning of the novel, unlike in the latter stages of the novel when Alex becomes ? A Clockwork Orange ?
Soon after committing a series of rapes, attacks and even a murder Alex is set up by his so called ?droogs? and is sent to prison for fourteen years. However after only two years of his sentence he is drafted in to take part in a government experiment called the ?Ludovico technique?, which would convert him into a creature capable of only sweetness ? a clockwork orange.?
? You mean, I said, it will be just like going to the pictures ?
Alex is overjoyed when he is told his treatment involved watching movies: little did he know these movies would change his life completely. His initial thoughts are that of excitement and happiness as he thinks soon he will be a free man ready to get back to his old ways. At this stage Alex never knew what exactly the ?Ludovico technique? entailed and it was this technique that changes Alex and the opinion of the reader.
After two torturous weeks of viewing nauseating films Alex is released into a world in which he could no longer even contemplate violent acts. He struggled to adjust to a life without choice ? you could even question the fact was it a life anymore. He thought he could rely on his parents or ? pee and em ? as he would call them ? however he was wrong, they too turned their backs on him. After re-visiting the place called HOME and being tortured by the music he once loved dearly Alex committed suicide.
?What I wanted was not something violent but something that would make me go off gentle to sleep and that be the end of your humble narrator?
This is a significant point in the novel as it is a turning point. In my opinion this is when the reader begins to change their attitude towards Alex. I feel that a life with out choice is not a life; hence it?s not fair to subject Alex to such cruelty as not being able to think about his own suicide. Surely everyone is allowed to have his or her own freedom of thoughts, even if these thought are evil.
Soon after committing suicide Alex is submitted to hospital where once again his life would go through a major turning point. After increasing press attention the government is forced into removing the affects of the experiment and Alex is finally cured.
? I was cured all right ?
Many now think Alex will return to his old ways by committing the ?in out in out? and participating in the odd attack here and there: many would think wrong. After leaving hospital Alex does soon return to his old life of sitting in the Korova milk bar while planning the gang?s attacks for the evening, however something has changed. Alex is no longer ?A Clockwork Orange? and he realizes this life of violence is wrong and vows to change.
In my opinion the way in which ? A Clockwork Orange ? finishes is vital in understanding the main theme of the prose. Alex ends the novel by reaching a level of spiritual maturity where he discovers life doesn?t revolve around violence and makes a promise to himself vowing to change.
? That?s what it?s going to be then, brothers, as I come to the like end of this tale ?
I feel the way in which Burgess has written this piece of prose is noteworthy. The word ? tale ? suggests to the reader Alex has real plans for the future ? as if to say this is the end of one tale but there is many more tales to come.
Burgess points out an interesting question in this novel. Would it be better to be forced to do good or to choose evil with freedom of choice? Would it be right to live our lives “perfectly,” on the condition that we had no control over it? Burgess states his answer in the words spoken by the prison chaplain, who says, “He who can?t choose, ceases to be a man.” I feel in this captivating novel Alex is treated dreadfully unfairly and everyone needs their own freedom of thought. In the last chapter Alex proves something extremely significant and that is that anyone with their own choice is capable of changing. The experiment to change Alex did no good what so ever and in the end it was his own choice to change. I feel this is an extremely well written novel that asks the reader a lot about their feelings towards Alex and for this reason I found ? A Clockwork Orange ? a very superior novel.
Другие работы по теме:
Clockwork Orange Essay Research Paper A Clockwork
Clockwork Orange Essay, Research Paper A Clockwork Orange is the story of a young teenage hooligan, Alex DeLarge, who with the company of his accomplices commit, repeated homicides and rapes at night. They break into homes of innocent people and commit crimes dressed like they are participants in a circus.
Clockwork Orange Essay Research Paper
“A ClockWork Orange” The picture opens to a close up of an eye with a peculiar long eyelash. The camera fades back onto the face of a young gentlemen, he begins to narrate: “There was me, that is Alex. And my three droogs (friends), that is Pete, Georgy and Dim. And we sat at the karuba milk bar trying to make up our plans for the evening ”
A Clockwork Orange Essay Research Paper Moral
A Clockwork Orange Essay, Research Paper Moral freedom is one of the most if not the most important of any freedoms available to humans. Moral freedom is the ability to either choose to perform good or bad deeds or both. Totalitarian governments take away one?s individual choice and thus, suppress and suffocate the soul.
Violence And Corruption In A Clockwork Orange
Essay, Research Paper Violence and Corruption in A Clockwork Orange Alex, the fifteen year old narrator of Anthony Burgess?s novel, A Clockwork Orange, lives in a society where violence reigns. This novel has a very direct nature, and is often blunt to the point of offense, but this makes it more powerful and helps to further its point.
Oranges Essay Research Paper ORANGESjack anderewsbio 20
Oranges Essay, Research Paper ORANGES jack anderews bio 20, period 2 april16,2000 ORANGE The orange falls into the “citrus” category of fruits. It can be made into juice, which is familiarly called “orange juice”. Orange juice is an essential part of the Canadian breakfast, that we eat every morning. Despite orange juice, oranges have many other uses.
Women Essay Research Paper Apples could go
Women Essay, Research Paper Apples could go one better than oranges. The concentration of apples exceeds that of oranges. The firmness of apples goes all the way through, and the firmness of oranges modifies when the outer shell is detached. They tell you to cut up apples when you have braces, but they don?t tell you to cut up oranges.
A Clockwork Orange Book Analysis Essay Research
Paper Banned for social reasons in many conditions and in many school systems, Anthony Burgess s A Clockwork Orange first seems to pierce the mind with its bizarre linguistic orgy of debauchery, brutality, and sex, and for some, refuses to affect them above the level of pure voyeurism and bloodlust (either for reveling in it or despising it).
Morality In A Clockwork Orange Essay Research
Paper In the novel A Clockwork Orange, the main character, Alex, is introduced as a fifteen year old with an uncanny vision for the life he so desires. As most teenagers do, Alex firmly believes that he knows all there is to know about the world, and believes that he and his droogs (Burgess, 5) have what it takes to wreak havoc on society.
A Clockwork Orange Essay Research Paper The
A Clockwork Orange Essay, Research Paper The new American edition of the novel A Clockwork Orange features a final chapter that was omitted from the original American edition against the author’s preference. Anthony Burgess, the novel’s author, provided for the new edition an introduction to explain not only the significance of the twenty-first chapter but also the purpose of the entire book, which was the fundamental importance of moral choice.
A Clock Work Orange Essay Research Paper
A Clockwork Orange A Clockwork Orange is one of the most controversial movies ever made. The movie is based around a thug named Alex, a teenager, who finds happiness in about any perverse action. Alex, who seems to find glory in rape, lust, and murder, tells the story from his point of view. The movie examines the usual cliches of “individual freedom”.
Acids And Bases Essay Research Paper What
Acids And Bases Essay, Research Paper What substances turned into Acids? & What substances turned into Bases? Hypothesis: Procedure: Pour about three milliliters of your sample in each of three test
The Design And Development Of My Circuit
Was A Task That Merged Into One Essay, Research Paper The design and development of my circuit was a task that merged into one. This is because in order to design a circuit to follow such
The Free Will And Spirituality Of Anthony
Burgress’ Alex Delarge Essay, Research Paper The Free Will and Spirituality of Anthony Burgress’ Alex DeLarge A Clockwork Orange. Anthony Burgess s controversial novel and Stanley Kubrick s awe inspiring film. Despite the intimidating reviews of critics nation-wide, Burgess s masterpiece was stocked full of intensity, perspicacity and innovation.
The Osage Orange Tree
– Peer Pressure Essay, Research Paper Peer Pressure in “The Osage Orange Tree” “The Osage Orange Tree” by William Stafford tells a story of how peer pressure kept 2 people apart who wanted to like each other. The narrator of the story liked one of his classmates but was afraid to show that he liked her. He didn’t have the maturity at the beginning of the story to go against peer pressure.
A Clockwork Orange Essay Research Paper 2
A Clockwork Orange Essay, Research Paper “A Clockwork Orange” is a very different movie. It has everything a movie should have, but the plot is quite disturbing, especially for the time it came out. I have personally watched this film several times to find the meaning, and every time I watch it I come up with a different one.
A Clockwork Orange- The Book Or
The Movie Essay, Research Paper In A Clockwork Orange, Alex, the narrator and the main character, tells the story of his teenage years, starting at fifteen. He begins his tale as the leader of a small gang that spends its evenings pillaging and wreaking havoc on the town until the gang mutinies and “Your Humble Narrator,” as Alex refers to himself, is caught by the police.
Orange Essay Research Paper A Clockwork Orange
Orange Essay, Research Paper A Clockwork Orange: Good Riddance to Bad Rubbish A Clockwork Orange received critical acclaim, made more than thirty million dollars at the box office, and was nominated for various awards; however, this esteemed film was outlawed from the nation of Great Britain in order to curb its immoral content from permeating society.
Analysis Of Clockwork Orange Essay Research Paper
Analysis of Clockwork Orange The film, A Clockwork Orange, is, to me, an almost exact replica of today s society. Basically, one kid, who seems to have come from a financially sound home and community, goes through about three stages–1. He violates the laws society has set forth to maintain order. 2. He is caught and punished for his crimes against society. 3.
Clockwork Orange Feedom Essay Research Paper Journal
Clockwork Orange Feedom Essay, Research Paper Journal 1 A Clockwork Orange In the novel, A Clockwork Orange, I feel that Anthony Burgess has tried to show the importance of individual freedom over doing the right thing. However he has taken an extreme example of violence and perverse acts to accent this belief.
A Clockwork Orange Essay Research Paper Science
A Clockwork Orange Essay, Research Paper Science Fiction A Modern Clockwork A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess, published in 1962, technically falls under the period deemed as ?Modernism?, yet it includes all of the features that were characteristic of that literary era. Burgess?s novel is a futuristic look at a Totalitarian government.
Poem My Journey Essay Research Paper My
Poem: My Journey Essay, Research Paper My Journey My journey through Nature’s community, A community of green Aging giants of nature. Standing in brown dead needles,
Get In Essay Research Paper Click Here
Get In Essay, Research Paper Click Here If YOU Have Friends! Can’t find the paper you need? Try Collegiate Care Comparing Casablanca to 1984 Charlie Parker at Storyville
A Ticking TimebombA Question Of Technology Essay
, Research Paper To say technology is a function of history or vice versa, one runs immediately into a problem of endogenatity. Irrespective of time, technology pervades culture (even the most primitive) and it is difficult if not impossible to claim that one directly affects the other. From the discovery of fire to the advent of space travel, technology profoundly impresses the world around it, for better of worse.
A Clockwork Orange 3 Essay Research Paper
A Clockwork Orange In Anthony Burgess s A Clockwork Orange, Burgess creates a gloomy future full of violence, rape and destruction. In this dystopian novel, Burgess does a fantastic job of constantly changing the readers allegiance toward the books narrator and main character, Alex. Writing in a foreign language, Burgess makes the reader feel like an outsider.
A Clockwork Orange Essay Research Paper Anthony
A Clockwork Orange Essay, Research Paper Anthony Burgess John Anthony Burgess Wilson was an English novelist and critic. He was born in a small house in Harpurhey and was the son of a bookkeeper and part-time pianist. He was found lying in his cot when he was a baby with his mother and sister dead beside him. They were said to have been victims of the Spanish Flu.
THE HOLY LAND Essay Research Paper The
THE HOLY LAND Essay, Research Paper The Holy Land Directly off of Granville St., Sunlight filtrates through the speckled backboards, And the dull orange rims smile to show their gleaming
Ads Essay Research Paper Advertisements Kellogg s
Ads Essay, Research Paper Advertisements Kellogg s Description This is a Kellogg s advertisement. It s a beach scene with an older man in fairly decent shape running towards the water. He is carrying a surfboard in both hands over his head. In the bottom right hand corner there is writing that says Help yourself.
Vitamin C Essay Research Paper Supplementing Vitamin
Vitamin C Essay, Research Paper Supplementing Vitamin C: Essential To Good Health Millions of Americans depend on vitamins. Vitamins are what gives you a boost and helps you start your morning right. In this report I will discuss different kinds of vitamins, where vitamins come from, how vitamins help you, oranges, and my lab results.
Task Centered Model Essay Research Paper Task
Task Centered Model Essay, Research Paper Task Centered Model Task-Centered model is a time-limited, goal-oriented method designed to help individuals, groups, and families with problems
Bathing The Dog Essay Research Paper Bathing
Bathing The Dog Essay, Research Paper Bathing the Dog Dear Janet, Today my mom and I bathed our new dog. We had a hard time trying to get him to stay still but we did. So let me tell you how we accomplished this task.