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Summary: Just what this book needs...another review!!! Oh well....
Review: I read this book in high school on the suggestion of a friend. I have grown up a little since then and I have read a lot of great books since but through them all Clockwork Orange still would have to be my favorite. It is violent, yes, which is probably why I liked it so much in high school, but it has a sense of humor also. Probably the first dark comedy I've read. To tell the truth I had to read the first couple of pages over after figuring out the clever russian/cockney slang Burgess uses. I had never read a book before where the author trusts the reader enough to make up his own language, which what makes this book stand out in my mind. I have not come across another book since that lulls me into the story like Clockwork Orange has. I don't want to get into a movie review but I feel both the movie and book are great which doesn't happen very often. If you like a happier ending with a brighter outlook you have the book and if want a darker ending you have the movie. Through all the books I've read throughout the years this one is my favorite.
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Summary: Literary classic
Review: This is a simply superb American novel, as disturbing as it is riveting. The novel follows Alex and his troupe of marauding friends as they happily go about murdering, stealing and terrorizing in their superviolent world of the not-too-distant future. Burgess tells the story from Alex's point of view, giving the reader tremendous insight into the sadistic and troubling inner-workings of the "protagonist's" mind. This choice of narrative point of view has an interesting effect: while the reader can't help but be disturbed by the senseless violence perpetrated by Alex and his posse, readers will find themselves actually caring for and understanding Alex (most of us have at least a little bit of Alex in us). When Alex is finally arrested for his horrible crimes, the government seeks to inflict its own version of violence upon him, trying to reprogram his perversely violent mind into the mind of a peaceful, law-abiding citizen. The moral implications are obvious and troubling: can society violate someone's free will to make them peaceful and good? The novel is perhaps most famous for the futuristic slang language ("Nadsat") that Burgess interweaves throughout the dialogue. The use of this language may be a bit confusing at the very beginning of the novel, but Burgess eases the reader into it, making it easy to understand quite quickly. Some readers may need to read sections a few times initially to get comfortable with the vocabulary. Despite this smattering of peculiar words, the book reads surprisingly fast. Many people are more familiar with Stanley Kubrick's famous on-screen adaptation of this novel but it is important to note that this edition of the book contains Burgess' original 21st chapter which was omitted from the first US editions and from Kubrick's movie version. All in all, this is a fantastic novel that will present readers with multitude of emotions. At times the book can be horrifying, at other times, heart wrenching, and at other times, downright funny. The novel's plot is certainly strong enough to stand on its own, but what makes the book a classic is its thought-provoking attempt to examine the role of free will and the role of society in promoting good, regardless of the costs.
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Summary: And O my brothers... this book rules!!
Review: People told me about this book for a long time, and so I finally borrowed it from one of my droogs (hahahaha, get it? Droog? word they used in the book to describe a friend), and I was pretty blown away by it. I loved how the author created an entirely different terminology for the book...This book, though an entire work of fiction, is proof that people can change their ways and repent from their diabolic behvavior. The movie was pretty whacked out too, though the book was probably better. The video had too many bright colours to reflect upon the darkness of the story, and the rather grey pictures I illustrated in my head while reading this. An undisputed classic, and should be read by anyone who wants to read a good book.
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Summary: will stay in you gulliver forever!
Review: Ahhhh our humble narrator poor little Alex. I first came across this book in a box filled with musty old books like it, and as soon as i opened it's pages, i could not put it down. I have since read it approximatley 20 times. This is my favorite book of all time! Burgess takes you on the horrorshow journey of Alex and his four droogs (friends) and all thier violence, rape, and total sadisim. When double crossed, Alex (who is 15 in the book, 12 in the movie, if i'm not mistaken) is eventually is used as the first test subject in an experimental reform process, in which he cannot even think about violent acts without getting terribly ill. He is then thrown out into the real world where he must face all of his victims, who still haven't forgotten, or forgiven, who he was. Burgesses' story of inborn goodness vs forced goodness in one's own personality is a tale you soon won't forget. While some people found it tiresome, if you love a challenge, this book is filled with new foreign words, and do not be surprised if you must read lines over and over again to get their full comprehension. Read the book over the movie, b/c the movie is based on the american version without the last chapter, a crucial part of the story.
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Summary: Darkly funny and satirical masterpiece
Review: I have tried to write a review of this book at least ten times, but I can never seem to find the right way to describe it. This is mainly because I consider A Clockwork Orange to be one of the most painful, brilliant, and disturbing stories ever to be put down on paper. The invented slang used by Alex and his "droogs" is one of the best parts of the book. You'd think that the slang would make it confusing to read, but it doesn't! In fact, it's strangely catchy. They call it "nadsat" and it's a kind of Russified English. And I don't even speak Russian. (Burgess later invented "caveman speak" in Quest For Fire.) The basic plot follows Alex and his gang of sadistic young punks as they run amok, beating, raping, and murdering with gleeful abandon in the London of the near-future. They then retire to a bar to drink drug-enhanced milk and plot their next crime. Eventually, Alex gets caught and is subjected to the will of the State. He's forcibly deprogrammed with the "Ludovico Technique" in which he's strapped to a chair, his eyelids held open by metal clamps, and forced to watch a long movie of non-stop murder, rape, torture, and other horrible violence until he gets physically ill at the mere thought of such acts. Then he is thrown back on the streets, a declawed kitten at the mercy of his former victims. The American re-edition is published with the controversial twenty-first chapter not included in Kubrick's film, plus an introduction by the author called "A Clockwork Orange Resucked." Unfortunately, it's a sad reflection on society in that Alex was shunned because of his violence, and when caught, had violence inflicted on him in order to make him stop. This extremely graphic novel received mixed reactions, either hailed as genius or dismissed as violent pornography. I would recommend the movie as well; it's visually inventive and a must-see from one of the world's greatest directors.
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Summary: This Book Was A Surprise
Review: I read this book for a college English assignment. I had never watched the movie, so I knew nothing about the plot. This was a book I read as quickly as I could from start to finish. I was extremely disappointed when I saw the movie. I don't think it captured the essence of the book at all. I would like to thank my English professor for having us read this book!
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Summary: Real horrorshow!
Review: That means real good in Nadsat - the vernacular that's based on Russian taken up by the English teens in this futuristic dystopian masterpiece. You must viddy(see) clockworkorange.com for its Nadsat-English dictionary for the first 30 pages so that you can fully comprehend everything that's going on. After that, you're homefree and it's smooth sailing! The use of the language adds another dimension to this ingenious work that is unlike any other book you will ever read. This book is so amazing, I don't want to give anything away. It's Lord of the Flies, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, 1984, and American Psycho all mixed up into one. Anthony Burgess creates an original, intense, and enlightening work that separates itself from the mundane formula-laden novels of today.
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Summary: He Was Cured, All Right!
Review: A Clockwork Orange is the ultimate psychotic mystery. Does society have the right to overpower evil for the sake of good by taking away one's right to choose? The book explores the difficulties of reconciling the conflict between individual freedom and social order. Alex, the story's protagonist is a child of the corrupt totalitarian society. He acts out the evil crimes against society without thought of retribution. Are there limits to which society should go in maintaining law and order? Should society do the wrong thing for the right reason, even though it frequently does the right thing for the wrong reason? The state's attempt to eliminate evil is an assault of the self because goodness is no virtue if it has not been chosen. The fundamental reasoning of the book is that free will defines humanity and represents the curtailment of choices as intrinsically wrong. A Clockwork Orange reprehends behaviorist conditioning for its infringement of free will. The story is a very thought provoking read. It not only addresses issues of good and evil but what is good without evil. One needs to look beyond the sex and violence to grasp the intense meaning of the story.
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Summary: One of the classics of 20th Century Literature
Review: Answer: Yes, it is wrong and unethical to dehumanize human monsters in order to make our world a safer place. Humans, like oranges, are no fun when they are made of plastic. Question: A clockwork orange looks just like a real orange, so why can't we squeeze it and make juice? Perhaps I cringe more at the rape scenes than I did when I was a younger reader, and I wonder whether or not we could have done without some of that. But the book is what it is: an idea taken to its logical, or illogical, conclusion. This one ranks right up there with 1984.
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Summary: Dialect!
Review: This edition of 'A Clockwork Orange' begins with a scathing criticism of the publisher by Burgess that I applaude. In the Author's note, Burgess describes how the original Novella as published in the UK consisted of 21 chapters. When Burgess attempted to publish the book in the US, the publisher felt it was within his providence to omit the 21st chapter, calling it a "sell-out". He continues to explain that not only did the 21st chapter provide a certain degree of numerical resonance, but that the concluding chapter contained his vision of the book's ultimate lesson. A lesson of change that is completely rendered impotent by the 20th chapter if left alone. Clearly riding on the book's success (and of course the Kubrick film that truly popularized his work - and was based only on the American '20-chapter' version), Anthony Burgess finally laughs loudest at the end of this disagreement. His attack on the publisher (who clearly still has rights to the book and is compelled by money to continue to market it) is so harsh that the publisher feels compelled to place a tiny little "Publisher's Note" after the "Author's Note" that basically says "I'm sorry" in a watered down and spineless way. It's easily the best introduction to a book I have ever experienced.
The story's heart is dark and disturbing. Centered around a troubled 15 year old named Alex who narrates the book from the first person, is an account of violence and pleasure. 'A Clockwork Orange' raises serious questions about the anatomy of evil in an extreme depiction of the 'Nature versus Nurture'argument. By default, Burgess compells the reader to question what is the anatomy of good as well - a phrase that doesn't roll off the tounge as easily because it is never used. But the real genius of this novella is the imaginary cockney dialect that Burgess creates to convey his message. It took me three chapters of slow, difficult reading. But by the fourth, I had adapted to the new vocabulary, understood the new language, and could read as smoothly as if I was reading my own words. A subtle and powerful lesson that makes Burgess' point about nurture all that more profound. The violence is what keeps you reading when the language is difficult, the going is slow, and the images are at times nauseating. Why?
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