A Clockwork Orange

Just a couple things to aid in unlocking A Clockwork Orange

1. The extra chapter
2. The language
3. The point

First of all, when beginning A Clockwork Orange, I had no idea what it was truly about. A lot of the books I read are classics widely publicized. This one was different. All I had was a raw interpretation on the back of the book, and the knowledge that Stanley Kubrick had made a movie based off of it with aids in style by Andy Warhol. So thus, a clean slate was there when I read the book. When I read a book, I like to read up on the author and background. It may seem silly, but I have found you truly find the center of a piece when you see what time period the book was written, the author’s life and personality, and such information. It truly gives you a glimpse into why it was written, why it is a classic, its purpose and true meaning. So naturally, with my lack of knowledge on all things A Clockwork Orange, I read the introduction. It was blatantly stated by the author, Anthony Burgess, that he truly did not favor this piece of work, whatsoever. It had been merely an artistic experiment that had gained world recognition. Yes, there are other pieces that he put much more time and passion into that are hardly acknowledged. He also stated that when he wished to get it published it returned with a chapter less. The publisher had cut off the last chapter, it ended on the sixth, leaving the seventh to not even be mentioned. A Clockwork Orange is designed to have 3 parts, which Burgess planned on selling separately. Each part was comprised of 7 chapters. Anyone that can do simple math can see this makes twenty-one chapters. Instead, Burgess found the revised copy was 1 book with twenty chapters. He had chosen the number twenty-one specifically with thoughts of numerology. It represented adulthood, maturity. Burgess was not pleased about the new structure, but noted it being a dark time in his life, and took the money. But due to his laments for the past approximately forty years, the publisher has added the last chapter. That was not before he had it published also in Europe, which did end with twenty-one from the very beginning. Now this all may seem pointless, but Kubrick read the American version, which ends on a very different note, being that there is a chapter less. Many people in Europe were extremely confused at the end because of this. One may wonder, “What could have been so dramatic to completely change the book?” Well, you’ll just have to read it won’t you, now?

Second thing to keep in mind when choosing A Clockwork Orange is the lingo. The main reason this book took so long for me to read was the language, and not the subject matter. Burgess has created his own slang language, so when you first pick up this book, it could be a little overwhelming. My general quote while reading this book was, “What the HELL?!” This book got a good thrashing because after a chapter or so I’d throw it across the room. This is not a comical exaggeration. I acted this way due to frustration in lack of understanding, that is, until about the first third chapter. An epiphany bashed me on the side of the head. It’s not about completely comprehending ever last word, but the imagery that comes from the word. It is difficult to explain, only one could truly comprehend by picking it up and sticking you nose into the pages. And that is when I saw that this was an enormous feat in creative literature. A whole new slang language that was so graphic you understood it. Words began making complete sense just due to the words he used. Still don’t understand? Here’s one of my favorite quotes illustrating his visually powerful new language:

“Then, brothers, it came. Oh bliss, bliss and heaven. I lay all nagoy to the ceiling, my gulliver on my rookers on the pillow, glazzies closed, rot open in bliss, slooshying the sluice of lovely sounds. Oh, it was gorgeousness and gorgeosity made flesh. The trombones crunched redgold under my bed, and behind my gulliver the trumpets three-wise silverflamed, and there by the door the timps rolling through my guts and out again crunched like candy thunder.”

Yeah, I know. It makes you just want to take your rookers and shove them in your ookos so that you can’t slooshy any more, just creech all bezoomy like. Ta-dah! I am now fluent!

Third thing to acknowledge is the point of the book. I’m not going to out anything, because I felt it was much more powerful, being that I had no clue what this was truly about. But let me ask you a question: how are we, as a people, fit to punish others? How are we to make all peaceful and loving? What does it take to make somebody naturally good? Should it be something of consent or of force? These are all questions acknowledged by this book, and handled in a very different manner. This book is violent, this must be stated Expect “ultra-violence” as the main character, Alex, calls it. But it is a very passionate, mind opening book. And despite all the frustration, I am glad I read it. I hope this helps anyone who has ever thought of reading it and couldn’t decide. But I don’t ask about the movie. I don’t think that one’s for me.