A Clockwork Orange
A violent teen gang leader narrates his future world in slang, then faces state reconditioning and a fight over free will.
First published 1972
ClassicsScience Fiction
More about this book
Story
Alex, a teenage gang leader in a near-future city, roams with his friends committing violence, theft, and sexual assaults while speaking in a highly inventive slang. His voice and worldview shape the story as he moves through the night, showing both his charisma and his brutality.
After his crimes catch up with him, Alex is imprisoned and subjected to an experimental behavior-modification treatment meant to make him incapable of violence. The process raises questions about punishment, rehabilitation, and whether enforced goodness is morally acceptable.
Released back into society, Alex must navigate rejection, political manipulation, and the consequences of what has been done to him. The story closes by pushing the question of choice, maturity, and redemption, with readers noting that different versions include or omit a final chapter that changes the ending’s meaning.
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Details
- Authors
- Anthony Burgess
- First published
- 1972
- Genres
- Classics, Science Fiction, Dystopia, Horror, Banned Books, Crime, Modern Classics
- Subjects
- bible · aversion therapy · unintended consequences · Beethoven's Fifth Symphony · gang rape · psychiatric hospitals · maturity · metanoia · assault · joyriding · rape · metafiction · orgasm · novella · antisocial personality disorder · classical music · black comedy · argot · Nadsat · dystopias · satire · literature · Juvenile delinquents · Science fiction · Rehabilitation · Fiction · Teenage boys · Criminals · Sátira · Muchachos adolescentes · Criticism and interpretation · Criminales · English Authors · Open Library Staff Picks · Violence · Slang language · Gangs · Ciencia-ficción · Social conditions · Ficción · Behavior modification · Long Now Manual for Civilization · Juvenile delinquency · Brainwashing · Fiction, satire · Fiction, dystopian · Fiction, science fiction, general · British and irish fiction (fictional works by one author) · British and irish drama (dramatic works by one author) · Kubrick, stanley, 1928-1999 · Burgess, anthony, 1917-1993 · Clockwork orange (Motion picture) · English literature · Juvenile delinquents in fiction · Adventure stories · Roman d'aventures · Délinquance juvénile · Romans, nouvelles · Jeunes délinquants · Réhabilitation · English Satire
- ISBN-13
- 9780393341768
[DEV NOTE: Eventually use our own synthesized data.]