The question of morality and ethics may be seen as a central concern of post-war thinking about culture and society. Explore this view in relation to a film/novel combination.
When exploring this view in relation to the novel A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess and the film adaptation by Stanley Kubrick it is apparent that morality and ethics are certainly a central concern of post-war thinking about culture and society. Within both we are given a moral tale, primarily that people should be able to choose whether to be good or bad. The question of the ethics of the treatment Alex undergoes is a central issue relating to culture and society as well as the seemingly social prophecy behind it all.
There is tension in the text between Augustinianism and Pelagianism beliefs. Burgess discusses this in the introduction of the new American version of the book. He states.
"It is as inhuman to be totally good as it is to be totally evil. The important thing is moral choice. Evil has to exist along with good, in order that moral choice may operate. Life is sustained by the grinding opposition of moral entities." (1).
Burgess is showing here his belief in the "Original Sin" and the presence of evil. Also he is saying that if evil was not to exist then we could not define what is good if we have nothing to define it against. The taking away of Alex's evil in the novel is in affect only taking away his free will. .
Burgess moralises throughout the book and this shows the importance to him of morality and ethics in post-war culture and society. This is shown when he says in the introduction .
"There is, in fact, not much point in writing a novel unless you can show the possibility of moral transformation, or an increase of wisdom, operating in your chief character or characters." (2).
In relation to this the reason for Burgess writing an introduction in the new American version of the book was in opposition to how it was first published in America.
A Clockwork Orange Authors who write of other times and places help us to better understand our own lives. Discuss A Clockwork Orange in terms of that statement. ... He is a walking robot conditioned by the government - a clockwork orange. ... "A Clockwork Orange" deals with moral judgment and the thought of taking it away from someone. ... The Clockwork Orange", what does the title mean? ...
A Clockwork Orange Authors who write of other times and places help us to better understand our own lives. Discuss A Clockwork Orange in terms of that statement. ... He is a walking robot conditioned by the government - a clockwork orange. ... "A Clockwork Orange" deals with moral judgment and the thought of taking it away from someone. ... The Clockwork Orange", what does the title mean? ...
Violence is the universal element in A Clockwork Orange. ... There is not just one function of violence in our lives, just as there is more than one function of violence in A Clockwork Orange. ... Clearly A Clockwork Orange, in comparison to violence of the present day, may be seen as harsh. ... Everything that happens in A Clockwork Orange happens everyday in our society. ... That is what A Clockwork Orange does and why it is perceived as so violent. ...
"A Clockwork Orange" is an anti-utopian novel, describing an imminent future in a stately supervised country. ... "A Clockwork Orange" confronts us with an anonymous, totalitarian country, as well as in "1984". ... But which warning does "A Clockwork Orange" imply? ... Firstly, "A Clockwork Orange" includes a warning against totalitarian state forms. ... In "A Clockwork Orange" the people feels threatened by growing criminality and for that reason elects an authoritarian party. ...
The novels, A Clockwork Orange and 1984 both represent a future dystopia. ... Irony and betrayal are devices used in both, 1984 and A Clockwork Orange. ... In A Clockwork Orange, the Ludvico Technique is used. ... This is similar to the Ludvico method in A Clockwork Orange. ... A Clockwork Orange also includes a warning against a totalitarian state. ...
He will be best remembered by his eighth novella, A Clockwork Orange. ... Burgess also plays with puns throughout A Clockwork Orange in order to add humor to serious situations and dialogues. ... The most principle theme of A Clockwork Orange involves the freedom of a man to choose between good and evil. ... Another very important theme in A Clockwork Orange is that of youth vs. old age. ... That is something that not many writers are able to do, which is why A Clockwork Orange is one of my favorite books. ...
- the opening line of Anthony Burgess" A Clockwork Orange, being the adventures of a young man whose principal interests are rape, ultra-violence and Beethoven. ... Burgess skilfully introduces us to his futuristic slang, or nadsat, making A Clockwork Orange valuable not only for the questions it raises, but also for its creative and experimental use of the English language in which we see hints of Russian. ...
Classical Conditioning in "A Clockwork Orange" The movie "A Clockwork Orange" is often described as one of the most disturbing films ever made. My question is what really disturbs them so much about this film, Is it the gratuitous sex and violence transparent throughout most of the film? Or is it...
An orange is ripe or not. ... There is a great use of orange and red in the set, perhaps used to represent the orange which can not be fixed. ... The title has two primary meanings: first, the basic meaning of the Cockney expression (not an example of rhyming slang, incidentally) "as queer as a clockwork orange", something that on the surface was normal, but inside was artificial and unnatural. ... This particular clockwork orange is human on the surface, but inside is no such thing. ... An orange cannot be "repaired!" ...
When Anthony Burgess wrote A Clockwork Orange, John Anthony Burgess Wilson created his own world set in London during a future time when gangs and violence are rampant on the streets, "which is his own particular vision of horrors yet to come." ... This particular brand of literature stressed the overly pessimistic view of human nature and featured, as was presented in A Clockwork Orange, violence as well as the dark areas of human behavior and society. ...
