I find it interesting that Alex as a character enjoys things that seem completely opposite. For example Alex likes doing things like beating up random people, taking drugs and rape, but he also has good manners (he always says "yes sir,") and he loves classical music which is normally thought of as proper and high class. Maybe Alex doesn't think of them as opposites. He truly seems to enjoy ultra violence in such a way that he almost finds it elegant. I think I remeber him saying at one point in the book that he thought beating people up was beautiful which would make sense if that was true.

I just watched the movie and although I think that the movie stays pretty on course with the book, I was wondering why they didn't add the last chapter where it looks like Alex is cured. It makes me think if I was directing would I want to put in that last chapter or leave it out. I think it makes a huge difference in the entire message of the book. Without the chapter I would assume that Alex would go back to being his old self, which would mean all the therapy and treatment was for nothing. But with the last chapter it shows that the treatment was successful and leaves the book with kind of an odd positive ending.

I find it very interesting the connection between the way Alex is being treated and the concept of behaviorism. I remember learning last year in psych about B.F. Skinner and how he thought he could make someone act exactly as he wanted them to through operate conditioning. Maybe Burgess thought that the experiments of Skinner were wrong and this was his way to show that. Either way I think Burgess knew about behaviorism when he wrote the book and incorporated it in the way Alex was "fixed."

Quote Analysis

Hey guys, I was wondering if any of you have noticed the consistent use of "what's it going to be then, eh?" I think this quote must be important because it is the first line of all of the parts in the book. I think it's pretty interesting that who is saying the quote, though, differs. This could be referring to how when Alex is in jail, he is completely powerless. Before, at the beginning of the book, it was him asking the questions and running things. In part two, it is the state who is asking the question, and Alex is the one who is in fear. It is interesting that Alex says it in the third part, though, because even though he is asking the question the phrase kind of lost all of its meaning, since he had at that point been brainwashed from the state and can't act how he wants to anymore.

Odd contrast

Hi guys, I was just wondering what you thought of how weird Alex is - not only in terms of his attracting with violence, but how he goes about it. For example when they are in the country the gang does a number of unspeakably horrible acts to the family, but somehow Alex still gets mad at Dim for suggesting some other horrible thing he could do. It's as if Alex has standards for the acts he commits, and in conjunction with his taste for classical music (which has a very tame and prim connotation) I think the line between culture and savageness could be a theme in the book. Thoughts?

Weird Words in A Clockwork Orange

Here’s a list of some of the weird vocab in this book! Obviously this isn’t all of them, so go ahead and add some to the comments if you find others.

Chelloveck- man, person

Devotchkas- girls

Droog- guy, man

Horrorshow- sick, good, intense

Glazzies- eyes

Goloss- speak

Keeshkas- guts  

Knives- drugs

Koshka- cat

Litso- face

Malchick- man

Malenky- little, small

Milicents- police

Moloko- milk

Nadmenny- arrogant

Peet- drink

Platties- clothes

Plenny- prisoner

Plott- body

Pooshka- gun

Pop Disc- record

Prestoopnik- criminal

Pretty Polly- money

Ptista- girl

Rassoodock- mind

Skorry- quickly

Slovo- word

Starry- old, ancient

Veck- man

Ultra Violence- extreme violence

Viddy- see