freeclo Freedom in Anthony Burgess A Clockwork Orange :: Clockwork Orange Essays

Freedom in A Clockwork Orange                                                                                    A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess tells a story about a newfangled man and his choices of freedom.  The book asks the question is it better to have someone constantly do the dependable thing, or to have the freedom of choice to do the right or wrong thing.  The author shows the affect of society on a human who has been institutionalized and let back into society.  The author of the book goes on to show how the protagonist copes with society under his given conditions.  Georgie let go of holding his goobers apart and just let him have one in the edental rot with his ringy fist, and that made the old veck start moaning a lot then, then out comes the blood, my brothers, real beautiful. (Page 7)  This had been an occurrence that took place when the protagonist was walking d accept the roadway with no apparent intention of harming anyone.  This occurrence shows the time in Alexs life where he is able to make decisions on his own, weather he chooses for those actions to be chastely appropriate or not is up to his discretion.   He has no real choice, has he?  Self-interest, fear of physical pain, drove him to that grotesque act of self-abasement.  He ceases likewise to be a creature capable of moral choice. (Page 126)  This is the occurrence of Alexs life after he has been arrested for his wrong doings and has been brought to the institute.  This is where the reform of Alex has occurred.  He had been tortured beyond his belief.  Now each time that Alex has a thought of an immoral deed he gets sick to his stomach.  Alex now has no choice of doing what he wishes to do he has no real choice.  This is what the doctors and observers believe was the reform of Alex.   I could viddy myself carving the whole litso of the creeching world with my cut-throat britva.  And there was the slow social movement and the lovely last singing movement still to come.  I was cured all right. (Page 179)  The government does try to make Alex an unconditionally good person through institutionalization however, since it is a forced goodness, conflicting his own will, a complete goodness is not attained.  This shows that the reform of Alex is now over and has no significance over him.