A Clockwork Orange is a speculative fiction novel by Anthony Burgess, published in 1962, and was later the basis for
a 1971 film adaptation by Stanley
Kubrick.
The novel was chosen by TIME Magazine as one of the 100 best English-language novels
from 1923 to 2005.[1]
Plot introduction
Explanation of the novel's title
Anthony Burgess wrote that the title was a reference to an alleged old Cockney expression "as
queer as a clockwork orange".¹ Due to his time serving in the British Colonial
Office in Malaysia, Burgess thought that the phrase could be used punningly to refer to
a mechanically responsive (clockwork) human (orang, Malay for "person"). It is
possible, however, that Burgess invented the phrase as a play upon the expression "a work of pith and moment".
Burgess wrote in his later (Nov. 1986) introduction, titled A Clockwork Orange Resucked, that a creature who can only
perform good or evil is "a clockwork orange — meaning that he has the appearance of an organism lovely with color and juice, but
is in fact only a clockwork toy to be wound up by God or the Devil; or the almighty state."
In his essay "Clockwork Oranges"², Burgess asserts that "this title would be appropriate for a
story about the application of Pavlovian, or mechanical, laws to an organism which, like a
fruit, was capable of colour and sweetness". This title alludes to the protagonist's negatively conditioned responses to feelings
of evil which prevent the exercise of his free will.
Point of view from one person
A Clockwork Orange is written in first person perspective from a
seemingly biased and unreliable source. Alex never justifies his actions in
the narration, giving a good sense that he is somewhat sincere; a narrator who, as unlikeable as he may attempt to seem, evokes
pity from the reader through the telling of his unending suffering, and later through his realization that the cycle will never
end. Alex's perspective is effective in that the way that he describes events is easy to relate to, even if the situations
themselves are not. He uses words that are common in speech, as well as Nadsat, the speech of the
younger generation.
Plot summary
Part 1: Alex's world
Set in 1995, the novel opens with the introduction of protagonist, fifteen-year-old Alex, who, with his gang members (known as "droogs") Dim, Georgie, and Pete, roam the streets
at night, committing violent crimes ("ultraviolence") for enjoyment.
Essentially, the first part of the novel is a character study of the protagonist. We learn that Alex is articulate and clever,
enjoys classical music (Beethoven in particular) and finds amusement during the
evenings in committing crimes and acts of sexual violence — justifying himself through his narrative voice. We learn that Alex
and his "droogs" (Russian for friends) have their own language known as Nadsat, and their own
hierarchy, in which Alex is the leader. There is a general disregard for the law and for older generations — creating an image of
a youth movement that is taking control of this fictional future. (This of course being the exaggeration of the concern that came
with the changing values of the 1960s, in which teenagers were becoming decidedly more unruly and
rebellious.)
Part 1 involves Alex reflecting on his illegal activity (which involves the rape of two 10-year-old girls, and also the wife
of writer F. Alexander). It describes the treachery of his droogs, resulting in Alex's capture and prison sentence for
murder.
The use of lyrical language and Nadsat somewhat masks the horrible imagery of Alex's actions, and, to some extent, Alex is
able to draw empathy from the reader, through his friendly nature towards his audience (referring to them as his "only friends,"
and to himself as "Your Humble Narrator," etc.).
Part 2: The Ludovico Technique
After getting caught for his crimes Alex is sentenced to 14 years for murder. Alex gets a job as an assistant to the prison
chaplain. He feigns an interest in religion, and amuses himself by reading the Bible for its lurid descriptions of "the old yahoodies (Jews) tolchocking (beating) each other", imagining himself
taking part in "the nailing-in" (the Crucifixion of Jesus).
Alex hears about an experimental rehabilitation programme called "the Ludovico
Technique", which promises that the prisoner will be released upon completion of the two-week treatment, and will not
commit crimes afterwards.
Partially by taking part in the fatal beating of a cellmate, Alex manages to become the subject in the first full-scale trial
of the Ludovico Technique. The technique itself is a form of aversion therapy, in which
Alex is given a drug that induces extreme nausea while being forced to watch graphically violent
films for two weeks. Among the films shown are propaganda films such as Triumph of the
Will, which includes Alex's beloved Beethoven (last movement of the 9th
symphony). He pleads them to remove the music, but they refuse to edit it, saying it's "for his own good", and that the music may
be the "punishment element". At the end of the treatment, Alex is unable to carry out or even contemplate violent or sexual acts
without crippling nausea. He is also unable to listen to Ludwig van Beethoven's 9th Symphony without experiencing the same
jarring physical reaction.
Part 3: After prison
The third part of the novel concentrates mostly on the following punishment to which Alex is subjected after his treatment.
Alex encounters many of his former victims, all of whom seek revenge upon him. He finds himself powerless to defend himself
against them, due to feelings of sickness and fear of death, as a reaction to the violence. He finds he has been replaced by a
lodger in his home, and wanders the streets, contemplating suicide. He then runs into his old 'droog' Dim, and Billy Boy, his
enemy from the good old days and they have since become police officers. Taking advantage of their positions, they take Alex into
a rural part of town to beat him up, and then leave him to his own devices. While looking for solace, Alex falls into the hands
of F. Alexander, the husband to the woman whom he earlier raped. Friends of the writer intend to use Alex as a weapon against the
political party, exposing the terrible things that have been done to him. Although it is not clear as to whether the friends of
F. Alexander intend it, their playing of a symphony by Otto Skadelig below Alex in a locked room drives him to throw himself out
of a window instead of enduring the pain of the treatment's conditioning. Alex's suicide attempt fails, and leads to his being
cured, after the bad publicity for the political party that follows.
Touching on themes of the power struggles between old and young generations, the corruption of the police, and also politics,
and attempted (but failed) suicide, the third section of the novel is the most reflective of the troubles of future society,
mostly shown through the final chapter, where Alex reflects that he and his friends have either been killed (Georgie), fallen
victim to the state (Dim's becoming a police officer) or outgrown their destructive behaviour (Pete). Alex finds that he no
longer finds pleasure in "ultra-violence", and yearns for a mate, and a child of his own. Alex knows that the generation after
his will probably be just as destructive, but that there won't be anything he can do — perhaps revealing Burgess's ultimate
deliberation on the unruly youth.
Characters
Alex — The novel's anti-hero and leader among his "droogs,". Alex often refers to himself as "Your Humble Narrator". At
the point of raping two ten year old girls, Alex reveals himself as "Alex The Large". This was later the basis for Alex's surname
DeLarge in the 1971 film.
George or Georgie — A droog of Alex's. Georgie attempts to undermine Alex's status as leader of the gang.
Pete — A droog of Alex's. The more rational, democratic member of Alex's gang.
Dim — A slow-witted droog of Alex's. The real brute force of the gang.
P.R. Deltoid — A social worker assigned to Alex, who monitors his progress through reform schools.
The Prison Chaplain (also the prison charlie, a take on Charlie Chaplin) — The
character who first questions whether or not forced goodness is really better than chosen wickedness. The only character who is
truly concerned about Alex's welfare; he is not taken seriously by Alex, though.
The Governor — The man who decides to let Alex "choose" to be the first reformed by the Ludovico Technique.
Dr. Brodsky — One of the co-founders of the Ludovico Technique. He at first seemed like a friend to Alex, and then
introduced him to pain. Plays the "Bad Cop" role when talking to Alex before and after
his sessions in the theater.
Dr. Branom — The other Co-Founder of the Ludovico Technique. He says much less than Brodsky and is interpreted as the
"Good Cop" role when addressing Alex.
F. Alexander — An author writing, at the beginning of the novel, his own novel called A Clockwork Orange. His
wife is raped by Alex and his droogs, and subsequently dies. He later takes Alex in and subjects him to his extremist friends.
Shortly after meeting it is possible that they try to kill him using the weaknesses caused by the Ludovico Technique.
Differences in U.S. editions
Although the book is divided into three parts, each containing seven chapters (21 being a symbolic reference to the British
age of majority at the time the book was written[2]), the 21st chapter was omitted from the versions published in the United States
until 1986. The film adaptation, which was directed by Stanley Kubrick, follows the American version of the book, ending prior to
the events of the 21st chapter. Kubrick claimed[citation needed] that he had not read the original version until he had virtually finished
the screenplay, but that he certainly never gave any serious consideration to using it. It has also been noted that Kubrick, on
obtaining the novella, ripped it in half, kept one and gave the other half to Terry Southern, co-writer of the screenplay.
Nadsat
The book, narrated by Alex, contains many words in a slang dialect which Burgess invented for the book, called
Nadsat. It is a mix of modified Slavic words,
Cockney rhyming slang, derived Russian (like "baboochka"), and words invented by
Burgess himself. One of Alex's doctors explains the language to a colleague as "Odd bits of old rhyming slang; a bit of
gypsy talk, too. But most of the roots are Slav propaganda. Subliminal penetration." For instance, the term 'droog' means 'friend' in Russian; 'korova' means
'cow'; 'golova' means 'head'; 'malchik' means 'boy'; 'soomka' means 'sack' or 'bag'; 'bog' means 'god'; 'prestoopnick' means
'criminal'; and so on.
Awards and nominations
- 1983 - Prometheus Award (Preliminary Nominee)
- 1999 - Prometheus Award (Nomination)
- 2002 - Prometheus Award (Nomination)
- 2003 - Prometheus Award (Nomination)
- 2006 - Prometheus Award (Nomination)[1]
Other adaptations
The best known adaptation of the novel to other forms is the 1971 film by
Stanley Kubrick, but there have been others. The earlier 1965 film by Andy Warhol entitled Vinyl was an adaptation.
Excerpts from the first two chapters of the novel were dramatized and broadcast on BBC
TV's programme Tonight, 1962 (now lost, believed wiped).
After Kubrick's film was released, Burgess wrote a Clockwork Orange stage play. In it, Dr. Branom defects from the
psychiatric clinic when she grasps that the aversion treatment has destroyed Alex's ability to enjoy music. The play restores the
novel's ending: Alex deciding to start a family. One of Alex's early victims, a bearded trumpeter who plays "Singin' in the Rain"
at the Korova milkbar, is modeled on Stanley Kubrick.
In 1990, a second play, titled A Clockwork Orange 2004,[citation needed] was written for the Royal
Shakespeare Company. It makes no references to the film version, yet does away with the novel's ending. The performance
was scored by Bono and The Edge of U2.[3] In 2002,
Godlight Theatre Company presented the New York Premiere adaptation of Anthony Burgess's 'A Clockwork Orange' at Manhattan
Theatre Source. The production went on to play at the SoHo Playhouse (2002), Ensemble Studio Theatre (2004), 59E59 Theaters
(2005) and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (2005). While at Edinburgh, the production received rave reviews from the press while
playing to sold-out audiences. The production was directed by Godlight's Artistic Director, Joe Tantalo.
Release details
- 1962, UK, William Heinemann (ISBN ?), Pub date ? December 1962, Hardcover
- 1962, US, W W Norton & Co Ltd (ISBN ?), Pub date ? ? 1962, Hardcover
- 1963, US, W W Norton & Co Ltd (ISBN ?), Pub date ? ? 1963, Paperback
- 1965, US, Ballantine Books (ISBN ?), Pub date ? ? 1965, Paperback
- 1969, US, Ballantine Books (ISBN ?), Pub date ? ? 1969, Paperback
- 1971, US, Ballantine Books (ISBN 0-345-02624-1), Pub date ? ? 1971, Paperback
- 1972, UK, Lorrimer, (ISBN 0-85647-019-8), Pub date 11 September 1972, Hardcover
- 1973, UK, Penguin Books Ltd (ISBN 0-14-003219-3), Pub date 25 January 1973, Paperback
- 1977, US, Ballantine Books (ISBN 0-345-27321-4), Pub date 12 September 1977, Paperback
- 1979, US, Ballantine Books (ISBN 0-345-31483-2), Pub date ? April 1979, Paperback
- 1983, US, Ballantine Books (ISBN 0-345-31483-2), Pub date 12 July 1983, Unbound
- 1986, US, W. W. Norton & Company (ISBN 0-393-31283-6), Pub date ? November 1986, Paperback (Adds final chapter not
previously available in U.S. versions)
- 1987, UK, W W Norton & Co Ltd (ISBN 0-393-02439-3), Pub date ? July 1987, Hardcover
- 1988, US, Ballantine Books (ISBN 0-345-35443-5), Pub date ? March 1988, Paperback
- 1995, UK, W W Norton & Co Ltd (ISBN 0-393-31283-6), Pub date ? June 1995, Paperback
- 1996, UK, Penguin Books Ltd (ISBN 0-14-018882-7), Pub date 25 April 1996, Paperback
- 1996, UK, HarperAudio (ISBN 0-694-51752-6), Pub date ? September 1996, Audio Cassette
- 1997, UK, Heyne Verlag (ISBN 3-453-13079-0), Pub date 31 January 1997, Paperback
- 1998, UK, Penguin Books Ltd (ISBN 0-14-027409-X), Pub date 3 September 1998, Paperback
- 1999, UK, Rebound by Sagebrush (ISBN 0-8085-8194-5), Pub date ? October 1999, Library Binding
- 2000, UK, Penguin Books Ltd (ISBN 0-14-118260-1), Pub date 24 February 2000, Paperback
- 2000, UK, Penguin Books Ltd (ISBN 0-14-029105-9), Pub date 2 March 2000, Paperback
- 2000, UK, Turtleback Books (ISBN 0-606-19472-X), Pub date ? November 2000, Hardback
- 2001, UK, Penguin Books Ltd (ISBN 0-14-100855-5), Pub date 27 September
2001, Paperback
- 2002, UK, Thorndike Press (ISBN 0-7862-4644-8), Pub date ? October 2002, Hardback
- 2005, UK, Buccaneer Books (ISBN 1-56849-511-0), Pub date 29 January 2005, Library Binding
See also
References
- A Clockwork Orange: A Play With Music. Century Hutchinson Ltd. (1987). An extract is quoted on several web sites:
[2], [3], [4].
- Burgess, Anthony (1978). Clockwork Oranges. In 1985. London: Hutchinson. ISBN 0-09-136080-3 (extracts quoted here)
- Vidal, Gore. "Why I Am Eight Years Younger Than Anthony Burgess," in At Home: Essays,
1982-1988, p. 411. New York: Random House, 1988. ISBN 0-394-57020-0.
- Tuck, Donald H. (1974). The
Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Chicago: Advent, 72. ISBN
0-911682-20-1.
- ^ [http://www.time.com/time/2005/100books/the_complete_list.html The Complete List | TIME
Magazine - ALL-TIME 100 Novels]. TIME Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-08-20.
- ^ Burgess, A.: "A Clockwork Orange Resucked", Introduction to W.W. Norton
1986 Edition of A Clockwork Orange, page vi
- ^ Sams, Aaron. U2 Discography - The Fly single. U2Wanderer.Org. Retrieved on 2007-09-15.
External links
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