Moral Choices In Burgess 'A Clockwork Orange' By Anthony Burgess

Great Essays
A Clockwork Orange Project Society is structured on a system of laws meant to protect the innocent and punish the perpetrator. Without these laws, nations would be without their moral compass, with nothing pointing to true north. Citizens would fall into the practice of performing actions only to benefit themselves, not caring about the greater good of the community. Therefore, it is one’s system of government which sets in stone the notion of right and wrong, good and bad, and the laws which force behaviors deemed acceptable. In Anthony Burgess’ A Clockwork Orange, society is controlled by a government which attempts to protect its citizens, but falls short because of the corruption within its branches. Furthermore, Burgess addresses the …show more content…
Contradictory to my opinion, Burgess supplies evidence in his novel, A Clockwork Orange to counter my claim through the details concerning Alex’s upbringing. Deltoid questions Alex, “You’ve got a good home here, good loving parents, you’ve got not too bad of a brain. Is it some devil that crawls inside?” (Burgess 43). This detail juxtaposes my claim because logically Alex has no reason to be bad, no traumatizing factor or abusive family that forced him to perform acts of crime. He purely is bad because it makes him happy, not that there is a devil crawling inside of him like Deltoid thinks. However, Alex’s society is not without faults. Even individuals like Deltoid fall into the same patterns of sin as Alex, just on a smaller scale. “Then he caught sight of an advert in the gazetta, which was on the table- a lovely smecking young ptista with her groodies hanging out to advertise, my brothers, the Glories of the Jugoslav Beaches”, it is prevalent through the vivid imagery of Deltoid being tempted by inappropriate and illegal magazines that the system itself is corrupt (Burgess 42). If men of great stature like Deltoid are supposed to help the struggling youth fail to make the right choice when …show more content…
This structure, consisting of mirror descriptions, shows the dramatic change in Alex’s characterization from his life of crime to his life post Ludovico’s Technique. The stark contrast creates the reader’s sympathy for Alex as the old men yell “kill him, stamp on him, murder him” as Burgess went on further to vividly describe their brutal retaliation on the youth (Burgess 163). This tone of sympathy is important because it brings forth the notion that life is better when a character or an individual has the choice to choose between right and wrong, instead of being helpless in one’s own body. Before reading A Clockwork Orange, I expected myself to be in favor of such a technique, believing much like the Minister of the Inferior that it would result in a safer environment. I, much like the government in the novel, considered the surgery as a means to an end, not fully taking into account the fact that a human being would be striped of his personality and dignity due to this torturous procedure. It was through the motif of music used throughout the course of the novel by Burgess that I came to understand the complexity of such a procedure, that it did not just take away Alex’s criminal instincts, “the first graduate from the new State Institute for Reclamation of Criminal Types, cured of his criminal instincts in a fortnight only, now a good law-fearing citizen and

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    A Critical Analysis of “Capital Punishment” by Sherman Alexie In the story “Capital Punishment”, Sherman Alexie wrote in third person and used different techniques to help the reader get a better visual of the events. The author aim was to show his view towards “Capital Punishment”. This story is told from the perspective of a cook who prepares the last meal for a man on death row. The author in this poem is very sympathetic with the man on death row because he think that he is there because of his skin color.…

    • 1080 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    However, the prosecutor claims that Meursault buried “his mother with crime in his heart” (Camus 96), implicating that a man who does not cry at his mother’s funeral is capable of being a murderer. For the most part, people view murderers as heartless monsters, so the rest of society in The Stranger attributes Meursault’s behavior to his callousness. Through these illogical arguments, however, Camus criticizes the societal justice system for its nonsensicality. Despite society’s attempt to reasonably explain Meursault’s crime, the explanations the people concoct are as irrelevant as the murder. Because the prosecutor fails to reference actual evidence relevant to Meursault’s conviction, even Meursault’s lawyer objects that the trial is focusing on Meursault…

    • 1863 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Significance of Nature There many meaning implied to the term nature. In many cultures nature to is referred to as freedom, a place where one can escape from the world and step into a new world filled of natural beauty. In Orwell’s novel 1984 you would think of the society of Oceania as anything but beautiful, with a dictator government, surveillance all around, and yet the term nature is still very much implied. In 1984, there are many significances to the word nature including- the symbolizing of freedom, the symbolization of beauty and it shows the destruction of the laws of nature. To begin with, Orwell shows how Winston’s time beyond the city and being emerged in nature is a symbol of freedom.…

    • 872 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Throughout Sherman Alexie’s poem “Capital Punishment” the narrator changes his perspective of the Indian man who killed a white person. At first the narrator only talks about the murder that the man committed, referring to him as a killer. However, as the poem progresses the narrator begins to feel connected with him, even showing signs of love. By the end of the poem the narrator transforms his view of the Indian, referring to him not as a killer, but as a man.…

    • 1304 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    For centuries many individuals have questioned the true mean of social justice as depicted by the law. For instincts social ordered structure and misrepresentations of citizens are issues that should be attended to by individuals in power. Although at times this might be impossible because those in power are manipulated by corruption, causing many of us to feel the lack of social status. William Shakespeare’s “Measure for Measure” is a perfect example of power and corruption. Also would an individual has a right to declare themselves merciful in any given situation?…

    • 539 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    From the family unit to the national state, each societal group is held accountable by the laws of their own creation. Whether through coercion or incentive, each member of the group agrees to abide by these laws. Yet were do these laws arise from? The answer is morals. Though some well-meaning idealists might wish for laws based on logic, it has been historically shown that many societies base their laws on a collective sense of morality.…

    • 1119 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Third German Reich under Hitler, the Soviet Union under Stalin, Mussolini’s fascist regime in Italy, the Kim dynasty’s rule of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, and Mao Zedong’s creation and subsequent ruling of the People’s Republic of China are all haunting instances in which people lost their natural right to individual humanity. Thus, one can conclude that the dehumanization of people living within a totalitarian collectivist society is a recurring theme throughout history. Ayn Rand’s Anthem portrays to the reader a dystopian society to which these conditions pertain. Equality 7-2521’s denouncing of the leaders of this society signifies refusal to comply with their heinous control over all people. The necessity for moral judgement…

    • 384 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Montag's Morality In the book Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, there are many symbolic figures. Such as Mildred, who represents the brain dead society which was partly caused by Montag. Clarisse represents hope for the society. Also, books represent knowledge, ideas, and education.…

    • 673 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Because he was brave enough to finally stand up for himself after his long struggle, Del can finally begin to live a normal life. The Romeo and Juliet Law passed, he is a grave owner, and now he can go to Community college. At first, like Jerry, Del accepts that he is not in control of his own universe. However, in the end, Del’s character demonstrates that defending oneself against those in power can lead to positive…

    • 1820 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Throughout the excerpt Rebecca, the narrator is recounting a dream she had about a place that is dear to her, which is called Manderley. While reading the excerpt the reader will come across a variation of moods. In the beginning one will come across a mood of mystery. Eventually, as the reader continues on throughout the passage the atmosphere starts to become nightmarish and very eerie. Subsequently, as the reader nears the end of the passage they will start to get a feeling of nostalgia created by the passage.…

    • 1327 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Andy resumes his ‘extracurricular’ services after a period of solitary confinement, but Red perceives that Norton crushing his hopes to catch the real killer has left a permanent scar beneath the cool façade: “If Norton had wanted to break Andy as badly as he had said, he would have had to look below the surface to see the change” (King 1983,…

    • 923 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    A Clockwork Orange Analysis

    • 1728 Words
    • 7 Pages
    • 1 Works Cited

    Analysis of Burgess’s childhood confirms the psychoanalytic theory that Alex and his fictional experiences within A Clockwork…

    • 1728 Words
    • 7 Pages
    • 1 Works Cited
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    It is inevitable to experience a series of conflicts throughout life. Anthony Burgess portrays different types of conflicts that Alex goes through in the novel “A Clockwork Orange”. Although the book depicts significantly horrific events, every human can relate to the overarching problems that Alex faces. The idea about being a good or bad person frequently arises throughout the novel. As Alex is out with his buddies causing chaos in the town, he starts to contemplate the choice of being a good person versus the choice of being a bad person.…

    • 1757 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Brilliant Essays

    Alex 's brain neurons were altered to make him feel ill when thinking of something violent. The society he lives in is pretty corrupted from the fact that killing and raping is still common. At the end of the novel, Alex 's gets cured from the Ludovico’s Technique and is returned to his normal self. Alex however was not sent back to prison even though he originally was supposed to be in there for fourteen years. In less than fourteen years, he is his normal self where he still robs people and not feel…

    • 1999 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Brilliant Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Critique on ‘Shoot an Elephant’ In todays’ society, we are influenced by many peers. Even though many may say to ourselves, “I make my own decision, I am my own person, I will do what I think is right.” With that being said by most of us, are we really doing what ‘we’ think is right, or are our decisions being made being influenced by other individuals? It comes across that George Orwell’s essay reflects what many may go through today. The struggle to do what is morally right when an entire world persuades individuals, or gives a different vision of the opposite.…

    • 911 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays