In history there are many societies that have fallen into anarchy and corruption. Whether it be from the authority imposing harsh rules or the people lacking in moral judgement it can be seen that a corrupt society prevents moral judgement. People in a corrupt society do not only indulge in immoral actions but these immoral actions are due to a lack of judgement; where the people condone and accept these actions. In the novel A Clockwork Orange written by Anthony Burgess, it is arguable whether or not the characters in the novel live in a corrupt society. The society seen in A Clockwork Orange are victims of a corrupt society because the people condone and accept adultery and rape; indulging in sexual actions immorally, the authority condone and accept immoral acts and people of the society have no bias against sin. By examining these arguments it will be proven that the characters in the novel live in a corrupt society.
A corrupt society is one where the people condone and accept adultery and rape. In a Clockwork
Orange there are many instances where people indulge in sexual actions immorally. In chapter 3 of part
1 when Alex and his droogs hijack a Durango 95, Alex follows through with his old surprise visit.
So he did the strong-man on the devotckha, who was still creech creech creeching away in very horriwshow four-in-a-bar,locking her rookers from the back while i ripped away at this and that and the other, the others going haw haw still, and real good horrowshow groodies they were that then exhibited their pink glazzies, O my brothers, while I untrussed and got ready for the plunge. Plunging, I could slooshy cries of agony and this writer bleeding veck the Georgie and Pete held on to nearly got loose howling bezoomy with the filthiest of slovos that I already knew and he was making up. (Burgess pp.10-
20)
The motive behind the rape of a woman can be said to be unknown. Why this demonstrates that the characters live in a corrupt society is not because woman was rapped but it is because Alex and his droogs have no bias against it. The fact that Alex rapes the woman whilst his fellow droogs, Dim,
George and Pete as well as the woman's husband are watching is immoral. The woman had no say in the matter of her rape because she was forcefully grabbed by Dim and forced to be raped. The woman is simply an innocent victim of Alex and his droogs. Before Alex actually rapes the woman he taunts the husband and beats him up as well. After he finished his raping the woman he thought of passing her to
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Dim to rape as well. At no point of the rape did any of Alex comrades tell him to stop. In another instance the morality of society is challenged once again. In chapter 2 of part 1, Alex and his droogs interrupt Billyboys crew from raping a young girl and begin to fight Alex and his droogs.
Billyboy and his droogs stopped what they were doing, which was just getting ready to perform something on a weepy young devotchka they has there, not more than ten, she creeching away but with her platties still on. Billyboy holding her by one rooker and his number-one, Leo, holding the other.
They’d probably doing the dirty slovo part of the act before getting down to a malenky bit of ultra violence. (Burgess pp. 13-14)”
Although the battle between the two gangs is occurring the characters in the story forget about the young girl who was about to get raped. Their motive was not to save the young girl; it was simply to brawl with Billyboy and his gang. The attempt to rape the young girl demonstrates corruption within the society seen in A Clockwork Orange because it tells the reader what the people in the story are like. Both parties are all around the age of 15. The young girl that was raped was ten. It shows us that the young people of the society indulge in immoral sexual actions. Although Alex and his droogs walk in on the rape, both parties never said that what was going on was wrong. The attempt of raping the young girl was acknowledged, accepted by both gangs and rather ignored by both parties. Without the coincidence that Alex and his gang stumbled upon the rapping of the young girl, it can be said that the situation would have been different. One can also see the true extent of immoral sexual actions because of how
Alex speaks about it. He speaks about the rape as if it was an art, acknowledging the steps it takes to rape a victim. As if that is what all rapists do; as if common knowledge within the society. In another situation it is seen that people indulge in immoral sexual actions. In chapter of A Clockwork Orange, the main character Alex, skip school and carries out a plan 2 young girls. “There it was then..and then i felth the old tigers leap in me and them I lept on these two young ptitsas. This tome they thought nothing fun and stopped creeching with high mirth, and had to submit to the strange and weird desires of Alexander the Large... But they were both veruy very drunken and could not feel a thing.” (Burgess p.36)
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The act of the two young female girls getting raped by Alex is immoral because of how it was carried out. Alex gets the two minors drunk, drugs himself and rapes them. This shows that the society is corrupt because it demonstrates the means of which sex is obtained. The people in the society do not care if young people use drugs or alcohol because it seen in chapter 1 that Alex with his droogs go to the milkbar and have drugged beverages. Alex uses the innocence of the young girls to his advantage. At such a young age most young girls do not indulge in sexual actions neither do young males but Alex being older finds other ways to have sex. Thus these young girls being tricked by Alex having sex shows how corrupt the society is.
Although the corruption within A Clockwork Orange consists of people partaking in immoral sexual actions, it can be said that the authority which governs the society is corrupt because it indulges in immorals actions as well. The authority seen in A Clockwork Oranges is seen to use its power to cause harm to other. One prime example of the government taking using its power to cause harm to people can be seen in chapter 4 of part 3 when Alex mistakenly takes the hospitality of the police.
All through was they did this driver veck just sat at the wheel of the auto, smoking a cancer, reading a malenky book. He had the light on in the auto to viddy by. He took no notice of what Billyboy and Dim did to your Humble Narrator. I will not go into what they did, but it was all like panthing and thudding against this liek background of whirring farm engines and the twittwittwittering in the bare or nagoy branches (Burgess p.111)
The act of the police hurting Alex is immoral because the police are the people who keep rule of the city.
In general Police are people who enforce the law. The people who are enforcing the law are hurting the citizens which shows the morals and ethics of the society is. Alex had just been beaten up and is in horrible condition. Although the police officers knew Alex it is still unjust for the police who represent the law to attack Alex. One may think that the police would come to the rescue of Alex. The real problem is that Alex cannot fight back because the police are the law. What makes this situation even more immoral is that whilst Dim and Billyboy are beating up Alex, there is a cop in the car who simply ignores Alex getting beat up. This only leaves anyone who is prey to the police’s immoral actions to be a
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victim in a corrupt society. Thus the authority seen in A Clockwork Orange is corrupt due to its immoral actions. In another situation it is seen that Alex falls prey to authority once again. In chapter 1 part 2, when Alex is in prison he has a confrontation with the guards. “It had not been like edifying, indeed it had not, being in the grahzny hellhole and like human zoo for two years, being kicked and tolchocked by brutal bully warders and meeting vonny lerring like criminals, some of them real perverts and ready to dribble all over a luscious young malchick like your story-teller.”(Burgess pp 57-58) Alex exposes the corruption in the prison. Guards in any prison are meant to stop riots and other outbreaks inside a prison that a prisoner may do. There job is to ensure the safety of the prisoners inside. There job is not to cause harm to the prisoners but in the case with Alex they do not stop. They use their authority over
Alex to their advantage and cause harm to Alex. Why this shows that the authority is corrupt is because the people who are supposed to be ensuring the safety inside of the prison are harming the people in the prison. It is unjust for a guard to beat up prisoners just because they are in the prison. It is not their job to do so. Thus the authority is corrupt for abusing its power and causing harm to its citizens. In another case it is seen that the government uses its power to change society immorally. In chapter the government move Alex into a new facility and start his treatment.
And I was forced to viddy a most nasty film about Japanese torture. It was 1939-45 War, and there were soldiers being fixed to trees with nails and having fires lit under them and having there yarbles cut off, and you even viddied a Gulliver being sliced off a soldier with a sword, and then with his head rolling about and the rot glazzies looking alive still, the plot of this soldier actually ran about, krovvying like a fountain out of the neck, and from the Japanese. (Burgess p.79)
The government embark Alex on a treatment that is supposed to change his violent ways using videos of harsh things. This is one of the many videos that the government show Alex which most carry the same violent nature. These video included women get beaten and a human head being tortured. The
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government do not harm Alex physically but mentally. They give him a drug that is to make him feel pain when he feels any urge to cause pain to others. What the government is doing is immoral because they are causing one to suffer and monitoring the suffering at the same time. While he is watching the explicit videos they keep giving him pills so that he will keep feeling pain when he sees the violent acts.
In chapter 3 of part 2, Cheif Chasso reveals to Alex the truth about the treatment. Chasso says that “Alex should not be grateful for the treatment, and that it isn’t a reward.”( Burgess p.70) The government use
Alex as a test subject for their mast plan but additionally use their power to immorally change Alex.
Neither does Alex have to go through this treatment to change. This displays that the government is corrupt because they are abusing their power.
Although it is clear the corrupt society in Clockwork Orange inhabits a government that abuses its power, it can also be seen that in the same society there is no bias on violence. In chapter 1 part 1 before Alex and his droogs go to an ally way where they meet a homeless man. “So we got a hold on him and cracked him with a few good horrowshow tolchocks, but he still went on singing... But when Dim fisted him a few times on his filthy drunkard’s rot he shut up singing and started to creech:”(Burgess p.12) The homeless man is helpless and oblivious to the violent acts that Alex and his droogs were about to do to him. Before the drunkard had called Alex and his droogs brothers whilst begging for change.
The homeless man was old and unable to fight back. What shows that the society has no bias against the violence is that all of the members of the gang indulge in the act. Not at one moment did any of them say to stop. In another instance, right after they beat up the homeless man they come across their next victim. In chapter Alex and his droogs come across a professor and they attend to wreak havoc to him.
“He threw these down on the pavement and then I treated them lower. He threw these down on the pavement and then I treated them to the old boot-crush, though they were hard custards like, being mad of some new horrowshow plastic stuff. (Burgess p.6)” The random act of violence against the professor was uncalled for and unjust; but in all means it was immoral. The professor had done nothing
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to Alex nor any of his droogs. He was simply at the wrong place at the wrong time. Alex and his droogs show no compassion but instead hate towards the man’s maturity and intelligence. There is no bias against the violence in this society because people are targeting others at random. In another case it can be seen that the tides have turned. In chapter 2 in part 3, Alex is back from recovery but meets a victim of his violence acts. “I never forget a shape,by God . In ever forget the shape of anything. By God, you young swine, I’ve got you now.’... ‘a prize specimen of the cowardly brutal young,’ he creeched. ‘Here in our midst and at our mercy. He and his friends beat me and kicked me and thumped me. They stripped me and tore out my teeth. They laughed at my blood and my moans. (Burgess p.107) After coming out of the prison one would think that the society his was in had forgotten him but in fact his release was in many newspapers. When the old man saw him, he called forth all bystanders to beat and hurt Alex. Why there is no bias against violence is not because all of the old people beat him up but it is because once the police stopped the fight, the police then indulged beating Alex up. But without the idea coming to
Alex’s mistaken rescue, the immorality of the professor is seen. The professor at the sight of Alex has no doubt of leaving Alex be. He simply wants Alex to experience what he experience the 6 years before, when Alex and his droogs beat him up. Revenge in any case is not moral because it still causes harm to another. Thus it can be said that in this corrupt society there is no bias against violence. This characteristic can seen within the society. Non of the people that the professor called questioned the violence that was about to occur. This act of violence was the same as when Alex and his droogs attacked him. Which still is immoral even if there is a reason to the violent actions. The professor hold no wrong to what he is about to do and cannot see any other way of revenge suitable. Thus it can be said that that the society in A Clockwork Orange is corrupt because there is no bias against violence.
In a corrupt society the morality of its people lay hindered by the rules and customs of the society. In a Clockwork Orange it was seen that the society is heavily corrupt. The young indulged in immoral sexual actions which include raping young girls. The authority abused people; using its power to
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obtain more power. Not caring if they hurt people in the process. In this corrupt society there was no bias against violence. The young embarked in violent acts against at random, but at the same time the old did the same. One can say that the coming together of all the immoral actions led to the corruptness of society. A society which allows rape to occur, indulges in violence as fun, and mentally abuses people to create a safer society is not a moral society. It is the complete opposite. A Clockwork Orange is a prime example of a society which has lost all morality, all ethics, and all judgement. Thus The society seen in a corrupt society is in fact a corrupt society because, the young accept immoral sexual actions, the authority abuse their power and people have no bias against random acts of violence.
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