1982. In great
literature, no scene of violence exists for its own sake. Choose a work of
literary merit that confronts the reader or audience with a scene or scenes of
violence. In a well-organized essay, explain how the scene or scenes contribute
to the meaning of the complete work. Avoid plot summary.
In Anthony Burgess' dystopian novel Clockwork Orange, Alex is forced to become a product of a governmental experiment, he is confronted with the question of conforming to what the government wants him to be and what he has always been. Burgess uses the violence of youth to highlight the problems in the new futuristic city, while showing insight to whether or not people can change from their past behaviors to new ones.
In the beginning of Burgess' novel, Alex is portrayed as a violent and ruthless towards his victims. He is superior to others as he beats, steals, and rapes people throughout the beginning of the novel. In a particularly disturbing incident, Alex beats a man and rapes his wife in front of him, forcing him to watch. Alex, clearly finding pleasure in the pain and suffering he causes others, feels superior as his boys continue to rob the house. In a later discovery, he is told that the wife that he had raped later died.
Later in the novel, Alex is used as a governmental experiment called the Ludovico's Technique, where violent images will be shown to Alex as he is given a drug that makes him feel nauseated and sick. He begins to associate the sickness with the violent images, making him sick whenever he is a witness to violent crimes. This use of violence, something that had once made Alex feel empowered and in control, now cripples him and is used as a weapon against him. This leaves him defenseless against enemies. Burgess effectively uses violence as something that can be used for and against Alex, showing Alex's struggle to be what the government wants him to be and what he has always known. His defenselessness pushes him to beg the man that he had once beat to take care of him, ironically leaving him at the mercy of those he had once been in control of. The violence is used effectively in the plot to create a turn of events. It shows the power switch in the novel. It creates sympathy for Alex, despite his horrific actions in the beginning of the novel.
Elapsed time: 40 minutes.
You did a wonderful job with your argument. You use perfect evidence and did not over summarize the story. I have never read the book and I still understood your point and didn't feel overwhelmed by a summary. I think you may have just made an error by not separating the conclusion paragraph! In my opinion, you got your point across successfully. That said, I do not know if it is long enough for other, more judgmental critics. Nice job!
ReplyDeleteI thought this was a good post Joyce! I've only seen the movie before and hardly remember it, but what you wrote was a just enough to give the reader an idea of what you were trying to say. I liked how you described the violence as a way for Alex to change and develop as a character but a good idea might be to even relate it to bigger themes and motifs within the novel. Those certainly add significance to the novel. Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteThat's what the violence means to Alex and how the reader sees him...but what does it contribute to the novel's meaning? I think you spent too much time discussing the violence and its effect on Alex, so you ran out of time to connect it to your thesis.
ReplyDeleteTry to limit yourself when you are talking about the story and its plot. In the third paragraph, for example, you could have simply stated that the government made Alex nauseous when he witnessed violence and how that made him feel helpless rather than empowered.
Then, you can move on and discuss how that is significant to the meaning of the story with plenty of time to spare.
Noah Symanzik