Burgess' novel A Clockwork Orange has been banned from schools, libraries, and other institutions many times since its publication. The reason most often given is that it glorifies sex and violence. Times have changed since 1962; do you think the book should still be banned or censored for this or any other reason?
Is the book appropriate reading material for upper secondary students? Why or why not?
Alternatively, what purpose might the myriad brutal and sadistic scenes serve?
Or: if you don't want to write about violence, and I know some of you don't, here's a third prompt: To what extent should society be required to permit people to exercise their free will? Relate your thoughts to the novel even if you give some examples from real life.
Do you see a relationship between the violence in the novel and the Nadsat vocabulary? Give examples!
Film buffs: Here's an interview with Stanley Kubrick about his classic film version.
Struggling with the vocabulary? http://soomka.com/nadsat.html
Are you missing Chapter 21? Here it is online.
Finally, the trivia question of the week:
What life-altering news did Anthony Burgess allegedly receive in 1959 which sparked his decision to become a full-time writer?
38 comments:
Noor Gudden, DENS3A
In my opinion the book is quite hard to read for students because they cannot understand all the slang words and they would feel that that need to translate a lot of words. But when you read through the book without wanting to translate every word you do get a sense of what is meant by the characters. I would advise my students to do this too.
I don’t think that you should forbid to read this book. But you should select an appropriate audience to discuss this book with, which would be higher year students. It is a good thing to introduce them to different kinds of literature. This book clearly shows that you cannot only experiment with plots and storylines, but that you can make up/construct a whole different language too. This book is quite a remarkable achievement in that sense.
What I would like to do most as a teacher is to discuss not so much the violence but the important themes in the book. On Sparknote (http://www.sparknotes.com/film/clockworkorange/themes.html) I found this quote: ‘Through his characters, Kubrick suggests that dark impulses are a fundamental part of human nature. Human destructiveness and power-lust don’t go away with proper conditioning, except when that conditioning is so extreme that it makes us inhuman. Instead, we must decide how to channel those impulses, when to give them free rein, and when to suppress them by force.’ This would be an interesting discussion question to combine with a History or Philosophy class for higher year students.
So to sum up, I think this book is interesting to discuss for its language and themes, not so much for its violence alone.
Felicity Postma - 0881014- Vens3C
There is such disgusting violence and so many horrible crimes in this book, and in addition to that, it's almost unreadable to sane people, that I think it should be banned everywhere on earth. Let's just pretend this piece of trash was never written this way, and re-write a less sickening story about someone that goes through a similar change in its life.
In my view:
People's own free will should be limited to the point where they should be hanged if they hurt or seriously endanger other people(like when Alex rapes the two young girls). If a person can be an animal like that in their younger years, it is my belief, that they will never suddenly transform into a 'normal' human being.
Trivia: In 1959 he was told to have cancer, but later tests discovered nothing of the kind.
Loïs Berghout
VENS3C
I understand why the book has been banned from schools, libraries, and other institutions, however, I don’t think it should still be banned or censored.
We have a right to read whatever we want, but I would not read this book with my students for just three reasons.
First of all, yes, it has a lot sex and violence in it, however, nowadays loads of books, tv series and movies have this as well so that’s not really the problem. The problem for me is that as a teacher, I want to give my students a safe environment where they can learn and be themselves and not every student has had a joyful youth and by reading this book, it might trigger certain memories that the student has been trying to hide or substain.
Secondly, I feel that the use of slang will be too difficult for the students. They would want to translate every word and then it would just take approximately a year to read the whole novel and that’s just a waste of precious time that could have been spend elsewhere.
And thirdly, I do not think that this novel will relevant for the students to read. Yes, it’s English literature but I, right now, do not see a link between A Clockwork Orange and English teaching.
It would be easier to read Shakespeare and make a link to English teaching than to grab A Clockwork Orange and link that.
Yessica van der Veere, VENS3C, 0893804
It’s understandable that this book is banned from schools since it has multiple violent and vulgar parts. Do I agree with banning books? No, I do not.
I think this book is not appropriate for younger students. Unfortunately, I know this from my own experience, because I read this book when I was 12 years old, I didn’t understand most of it and the violent parts gave me nightmares. I don’t think anyone under the age of at least 16 should read this book.
With the proper guidance from the teacher and a list of the words that are in the book’s own strange slang with the translation this book can be read by the older students. It touches on several social injustices and violence so guided by the teacher these subjects can be discussed in class.
To give a positive spin on this dystopian world the class could for example discuss these things:
How can violence be avoided?
How we can make sure our society doesn’t turn into the society described in the book?
It is important to discuss the heavy, brutal and downright sadistic topics in this book in a safe environment guided by a teacher, because whether we like it or not some of these scenes reflect back on real life.
I do not agree with censoring or banning this book for the sole purpose that in this day and age, students - as well as anyone living on this earth with access to the internet and tv - are capable of being exposed to sex and violence. As much as we like to limit exposure to these things from young people for as long as we can, they are a part of life. Everyone has sex, and those who don’t watch it happening in tv shows, movies or certain websites. Violence is all around us. It does not have to directly affect us: take wars for example. Pick up any newspaper and you’ll find at least three stories about yet another attack in a big city or a police officer killing an unarmed citizen.
In short: violence and sex are all around us, censoring these things does not prevent people from finding other ways to be exposed to them.
I actually believe that these things should be talked about and discusses, as long as the teacher makes sure this happens in a safe and confidential environment.
Zenab Zamil, 0909703, VENS3C
Bart Neven VENS3C
I understand why the book was banned in those days. It features a myriad of sexual, and violent scenes which are not appropriate for children. Children might not see the meaning after all that violence and might be scarred in the process. In those times the world was a much different world, so I understand why they banned it. And I think that it should be banned until the children are at an appropriate age.
These days, a 10 year old child can get a copy of GTA 5 and start killing everyone in the game. Children these days are a lot more used to graphic images, so I think a book such as a clockwork orange would not have that big of an impact. However, I think this is all wrong. There is a reason why some books/games are rated for adults only and I feel like a clockwork orange should be treated the same. Just make it 16/18+ and it is fine. And put a disclaimer on it or something.
Babette Sutter VENS3C
I do understand why schools and libraries wouldn’t want people, especially kids, to read this book. However, I don’t think it’s right to outright ban it, because people should be able to read and write whatever they want when it comes to fiction. Violence has always been around us. In our neighbourhoods, on the internet, on the news and other tv shows: you can’t escape violence.
I don’t think this is an appropriate book to teach to the younger and lower-level pupils that we teach. Maybe with a small dictionary for all the difficult words you could teach this to 5 and 6 vwo, but then I still think there are other, more appropriate books that are also interesting as well. If you decide to teach it anyway, make sure to closely guide your students through it in a safe environment, cause some students might struggle with the very vulgar parts. As a teacher, you could turn it into a lesson on violence, and how we as a society can prevent these things from happening in real life. It’s important that these terrible subjects are talked about, since that might not always happen at student’s homes.
Mr. Burgess, despite practically inventing a pidgin just for one novel, manages to express the central ideas of the book quite clearly. For the third prompt, society's responses to Alex's expressions of free will become of interest.
Many modern societies, including our own, hold to the general rule of thumb that one's freedom ends where another's begins. We are governed by a rule of law, but many invariably choose to break certain rules and laws. While there are consequences for many harmful actions, directly or otherwise, the individual's freedom of choice remains at a very basic level. One of the points this novel pushes is, what if it didn't?
Through the use of the Ludovico Technique, Alex is given the ultimate consequence for his actions by being rendered unable to even think about violence; he is literally stripped of the freedom to choose. Burgess presents this as a bad thing, with the implication that because he has to be good, it is meaningless. Alex is ultimately likened to nothing more than a machine.
These are not two extreme situations by coincidence; we are meant to see two possible reflections of our society. In one, total freedom of consequence, as portrayed by Alex at the end of the 20th chapter. In the other, the drastic overreach of the state leading to nothing but cogs in a clockwork. Personally, I would conclude that Chapter 21 indicates this to be specifically about criticizing the state, given the final outcome. Nonetheless, an easier reading would be to assume the promotion of a balance between freedom and the state.
Seda Ozdemir VENS3C
It is obvious why schools and libraries have tried to keep this book away from society since it does not highlight topics which are easy to read and think about. However, this does not mean that one is allowed to read the book. That right should not be taken from readers of the proper age. Moreover, topics such as sex are touched upon more than ever nowadays.
I think it is possible to read and discuss this book with higher levels on the condition that the teacher is aware of the personal status of each of the students. Otherwise, this topic can cause numerous problems. As a teacher, however, I would not prefer to teach such lessons since the content would be more important to me. Considerably, it is the question whether deciding to focus on the content of the book or the reading skills of your pupils.
Lisa Aalmers VENS3C
Burgess believed that the presence of moral choice ultimately distinguishes human beings from machines and I agree with him. I think people should always be able to choose though they must also suffer the consequences of their choices. It is people’s right to make their own choices, no matter if they choose the good or the bad. I also think that when people don’t have a choice, there is no difference between good and bad. For example, if someone is to murder someone and he or she didn’t choose to do it but was forced, like a machine literally programmed to do it, he/she is not doing anything bad or good.
Another interesting point is that people often say that they don’t have a choice. But people always have a choice. They say they don’t have a choice because they don’t want to suffer the consequences because these consequences are bad for them.
Trivia: He was diagnosed as having an inoperable brain tumor and was given just one year to live so he was invalided home and no longer able to teach.
Lisanne Bakker VENS3C
Clockwork Orange is a disgusting book. I had a hard time reading through it and if I'm being honest: I stopped reading it too. This book should be banned from schools, at least until the age of 16. Why? Because we, as teachers, are supposed to offer our students a safe environment. Plus the fact that, we as teachers, are supposedly role models for the students. I do not think it is a good idea to expose the students to this book, it might trigger emotions or bad experiences.
Secondly, free will is a myth. The choices we make are all based on our human nature and our environment. To what extend should we be able to give in to our impulsive behaviours, should be the question. We shouldn't, therefore society should be able to control us with certain laws and rules. There are people out here and they don't murder anyone simply because they were told not to by society.
However, should they expose them to an eye for an eye? No. If you kill a murderer, you're a murderer as well. So, The Netherlands is pretty neat.
Meryem Öztürk VENS3C
It is understandable why this book has been banned from libraries and schools because there are many vulgar and violent parts in it.
Furthermore, I would never choose this book to read with my students. Not only because of the inappropriate parts but also because of the use of English. The book could be taught by using a dictionary, but I still think that this novel is irrelevant to read. I do agree on the fact that we shouldn’t avoid topics such as sex, violence and how we can avoid violence but this can be done differently. We can discuss these topics instead of spending and wasting time on searching difficult words.
I do think that the book should be banned for readers under 18 or 20 years old. Why? Because the book contains a lot of gruesome scenes, which I think are very difficult to get through. It is also very difficult to understand such literature when you have a hard time reading through 'nasty' scenes (to summarize the violent, sexual and criminal acts in the book). It was not until I talked to a classmate about the book, that I found out that the style of writing is very unique and interesting to read. Until then, I was just too distracted by the gruesome scenes. Because of the scenes, I also had a hard time following the actual story behind it, which of course is a shame, since the story itself is interesting.
With this reasoning I have also answered the question whether it is appropriate reading material for upper secondary students. I do not think it is proper material at all and would recommend starting off with other literature.
VENS3C - Besha Mahmood
While I was reading the book I understood why the book was banned during that time. The story contains a lot of sexual and violent scenes. Also, it was quite hard to read because of the slang they use in the story. However I do not agree with censoring and banning the book.
I do agree with the fact that it is not appropriate for younger students. Children might not understand the meaning of the story because of the sexual and violent scenes. They will be more focused on that rather than the storyline. I understand why it was banned in those days people were not exposed to these kind of violent and sexual acts. Whereas now we have the internet and children of a young age are exposed to pretty much everything. The book does not need censoring, put it at the adult section of the library and put a disclaimer on it.
There could be a way to teach this in class from what I read from my classmate’s answers, but for me personally I would not be comfortable with teaching this book in class. Mostly because I do not know how my pupils would react to the story. The use of slang will be too difficult for my pupils. You need a whole list of every slang translated. Also, like my classmate Loïs Berghout said “I want to create a safe environment for my pupils where they can learn and by reading this book, it might trigger certain memories that the student has been trying to hide or sustain.”
Melisa Maria VENS3C
I think the book should be banned up to a certain age. It contains a lot of violence and isn’t appropriate for all audiences. The book should advertise this on the cover and after that, it is the choice of the reader whether they will read it.
Personally, I believe that when something is put away or ignored by the "adults" in order to keep children or teenagers from doing certain stuff often leads to even more trouble than that would have happened if those things were just discussed. I think the same goes for the violence in A Clockwork Orange. I think the book can be a good way to discuss violence with pupils and to talk about the fact that it is not the right thing. Next to that, I believe there are some very important moral messages that are worth thinking about or to have a discussion about.
Whether the book would be appropriate reading material is something to be discussed. The nadsat use makes the book a very tough read and therefor I do not think all students will be fine reading it on their own. On the other hand, reading the book and being to lazy to look the words up might challenge the students on a new level and it might help them develop more creativity in writing.
Dalina Mahmood VENS3C
When I opened up Anthony Burgess book and began to read it, I was completely lost. There were a set of slang that I found very confusing at first. I had to make a huge effort to understand what was going on. I had to try to decipher the words on the basis of the rest of the sentences. Furthermore, the book depicts, sexual degradation, nudity, torture, violence and a lot of hate.
In this time and age, the use of social media provides us with exactly the same violence materials. Pupils have fast and easy access to all of this disturbing materials on the internet and social media. Although Clockwork orange can be disturbing an unpleasant to some readers out there. It does display some important topics such as, sexual degradation, nudity, torture, violence and a lot of hate. These topics all can be related to modern society.
Banning the book for revealing the agonizing truth about humanity, does not help anyone. In fact, it lets people believe that that these things do not occurs in the world right now. Therefore, it is important to recall that in our society such things do occur. Every day, people around the world are murdered, raped and abused. That’s why it is crucial to understand and to be talked about.
Personally, I think It should not be banned and teachers should use it in class, it all depends on the age and level of your pupils, and to create a secure friendly environment for your pupils. For the language, The teacher can help the pupils and explain the words or, let them look up the words.
Yesse VENS3C
In my opinion i find that due to freedom of press this literary work of art should not be banned or censored. Just the fact that is displays horrible violence does not mean its a bad book and it does not mean it should be banned. Furthermore i think you can't force students to read this book. Some students are not comfortable with the level of violence in the book and no student should be forced to read something that unsettles them. Besides that, the way its written with lots of Russian like words its difficult to comprehend in the beginning. Some students will have trouble with getting up to speed with the book. It will demotivate them and some will not be able to get through the book.
This does not mean that if a student gets a choice in books he can't read this book. I myself read it for my english class in high school and i found it to be an extraordinary story. (But then again my whole list was comprised of dystopias, mentally ill characters and books that deal with the moral nature of man)
Tamara Salem - 0920243 - VENS3C
I think a time like this, it should certainly be banned. Even though the world is already a messed up place, adding another depressing book to the reading lists in High School, doesn't make this world a better on. Glorifying sex and violence in a book read by teenagers isn't very smart. By doing this, children who already have a violent history might get some wrong ideas.
On the other hand, children must learn how scary this world can be and that they have to be careful. When not knowing how messed up people can be, children are going to grow up as a naive person who trusts everyone.
Mehmet Coskun - 0908868 - VENS3C
I think the book should not b e banned. The book might show a bad example of how to live your life, but so do most tv shows and movies these days. When I have seen an episode of Breaking Bad, I'm not suddenly inclined to start cooking meth. Students may be impressionable and/or shocked and/or scared, but that doesn't mean that artistic freedom should be caged.
Marieke van Lith DENS3A
I don't think it should be banned per se. It's al about context and guiding your students through a book like this. Yes, it is a lot of violence and yes the main character is glorifying it. But is the writer? Is he not just sketching a society where violence is normal and how government is dealing with that? It also shows what a messed up home Alex is from and how there isn't really anybody else that's giving him a chance. The book ends with his old friend getting married and saying his olf life behind. Even Alex rethinks his life and I believe that from that moment on, he's a changed man too. This should be the focus of the book and not that fact that the boys enjoy violence so much.
It's important that the students that read it, understand the context and meaning of the story. The language might be a bit difficult to understand so maybe a higher level would be more appropriate.
When I read the book, I was constantly thinking about certain aspects of the book in the fields of fate, faith and free will. Circumstances shape the characteristics of a person, just as Alex describes in the book.
"But, sir, sirs, I see that it's wrong. It's wrong because it's against like society, it's wrong because every veck on earth has the right to live and be happy without being beaten and tolchocked and knifed. I've learned a lot, oh really I have."
I believe that we are honored with free will to organize our own lives. In my religion, our holy book gives us rules of conduct (guidelines) that define the area of lusts, temptations, good and evil within the area of free will. We live in a society in which the sky is the limit, but due our weaknesses we cannot control certain things, like Alex couldn’t control his behavior.
"My endeavour shall be, in such future as stretches out its snowy and lilywhite arms to me before the nozh overtakes or the blood spatters its final chorus in twisted metal and smashed glass on the highroad, to not get loveted again. Which is fair speeching."
It is good to realize what our capacities and limits are, a democracy also had its capacities and limits. In this modern-day society, we don’t like rules, to put it more simply we don’t want anyone to impose anything on us. However, having rules in these times protects the area of free will. An example is the Dutch drug policy: you can decide on the use of soft drugs yourself, but hard drugs is forbidden, since the temptation is too overwhelming to be resisted.
Claudia Crenshaw DENS3A
I strongly believe that A Clockwork Orange should be taught in schools. The human inclination towards violence is an unfortunate reality that should be openly discussed in the relative safe environs of the classroom. Students should be encouraged to read Alex’s “humble narration” and decide for themselves if in fact Burgess is glorifying violence or not. What Alex and his band of ‘droogs’ do is despicable and horrifying, and if that were taken as a given then the discussion could proceed to trying to understand why we are prone to violence. The students could also reflect on the government’s role in dehumanizing Alex. How much control should a government have over its citizens? How should people be treated that break the law? Why do some people like Alex turn to violence? How does it make them feel to read a book written in ‘nadsat’? Can they relate to Alex’s alienation? Did the book make them more aware of the violence against women? There are so many pertinent issues in this book that unfortunately remain unresolved. Perhaps some change could be made by bringing the themes to light and discussing them openly and wholeheartedly. As teachers, I believe we have a unique role in opening minds to all kinds of ideas. We can discuss complicated themes through literary analysis, and help our students to expand their critical thinking about the world around them.
I think Anthony Burgess’ may have written ‘A Clockwork Orange’ to invoke a discussion about the human condition concerning good and evil in relation to free will and self-determination. With its horrifying and appallingly violent scenes he deliberately crosses common moral boundaries, maybe in order question whether these boundaries are justified, and to question by whom exactly they are imposed.
It’s extremely interesting to have this discussion in class, with upper secondary students, since the topic is still very relevant today.
Reading the book is very challenging though, not only because of the use of a made up language called Nadsat, but also because of its terribly violent passages.
Reading this book makes one aware that the balance between freedom (free will, freedom of speech) and humanity is delicate. Or even more accurate: There’s a thin line between freedom and violence.
This book explores what happens when all boundaries are set aside and morality no longer exists. Both Alex’ behavior, as well as the State’s actions against his behavior are immoral and extremely offensive.
The novel invokes questions like : to what extent do we need to conform ourselves in order to not be hurtful to the other? When does freedom of one person starts to inflict the other? To what extent are we free? To what extent are we influenced/ restricted/opressed by media, politics, religion?
It’s clear that Burgess tries to make us aware that to have a free will is important, but to know what to do with it is even more important. Additionally we should be careful to have an independent mind that isn’t influenced by higher powers.
To quote the writer: Conformity is natural, and perhaps preferable for many people, he explains, but “when patterns of conformity are imposed by the state, then one has a right to be frightened.” Ultimately, he writes of A Clockwork Orange, “what I was trying to say was that it is better to be bad of one’s own free will than to be good through scientific brainwashing.” (www.boingboing.net)
Later Burgess admits that the violent content of the novel "nauseated" him:
“The book I am best known for, or only known for, is a novel I am prepared to repudiate: written a quarter of a century ago, a jeu d'esprit knocked off for money in three weeks, it became known as the raw material for a film which seemed to glorify sex and violence. The film made it easy for readers of the book to misunderstand what it was about, and the misunderstanding will pursue me until I die. I should not have written the book because of this danger of misinterpretation” ( www.en.wikipedia.org)
JULIA KARREMAN DENS3A
This book was not a an easy read. I had chosen beforehand not to use the Nadsat dictionary. I told myself it was like reading Shakespeare and throughout the storyline and from the context, the unknown words were getting more and more meaning. I especially applaud the creativity to construct such a language and to entangle it into the story.
I don’t think this book should be banned or censored although the violence really struck with me. Therefore I don’t think it is appropriate for middle secondary students.
Today’s students already grow up to fast, living a life in an cyber world where they are constantly online and getting to early in contact with the harsh and chauvinist cruelties of our world. A lot of students do visualize to an high extent when they read and as their teacher I wouldn’t want to put them in a situation where they don’t feel comfortable to read this book being the age that they are. It’s a different story for upper secondary students. Although then I would recommend to use the Nadsat Dictionary beforehand.
Dagmar Dubois DENS3A
I definitely don’t think that A Clockwork Orange should be banned or censored from schools, libraries and other institutions. One could argue that perhaps there should be a minimum age required for reading the novel but to say it should be withheld completely would be going too far. The topic of violence, for example, albeit hard to read at times, is an issue prevalent in our society and is not something that is going to go away any time soon, unfortunately. This is a topic of discussion that if approached correctly and carefully, could enable students to reflect why people might turn to violence and what, if any, implications this could have on society. In addition, such a discussion could also lean towards greater questions such as to what extent are we really free to express our thoughts and opinions? What role do media, politics and religious persuasion play in the societal moral compass? I believe students in upper secondary school should be encouraged to think about these topics and discuss them in a safe classroom setting. To that extent, I think these types of works of literature shouldn’t be forgotten and should be discussed openly, despite the sometimes gruesome and violent portrayals.
I believe A Clockwork Orange shouldn’t be banned or censored at all. Even though the story can be extremely unpleasant or disturbing for people to read, it can definitely be related to modern society with all the good and evil that is present in everyday life.
If the book is appropriate reading material for upper secondary students depends on the way it is presented to the students, how the students are guided through their reading process and what kind of students and school you’re teaching at. I personally believe that with proper guidance and a safe environment, it can lead to very interesting discussions in class where, for example, students can talk about the visceral and thrilling portrayal of the gruesome acts in the book and put them in perspective, or talk about how people like Alex become the way they are and figure out ways to treat them.
Of course the type of language used in the book can be challenging as well, but again, with proper guidance of students of a certain level and additional information by the teacher, it is doable.
Ymke Went
(DENS3/4A)
The book is hard to follow because it contains alot of slang which can be difficult to understand. I understand why the book was banned during that time because it was not normal to speak openly about sexual activities.
In my opinion people should be free to speak about whatever they want. Although, I do agree that this language is not appropiate for kids or younger students. They might nog understand the story because they could be distracted by the sexual scenes instead of being focussed on the story. In conclusion I do understand why it was banned back in the days. However, I don’t think it will solve anything by banning it now a days. Where we have the internet and very young children are exposed to almost everything.
Personally, I do not want to teach this in class because I would feel uncomfortable just like my students and I do not know how my student will react to the story and the slang that is being used.
Ercan Yilmaz DENS3A
In my opinion books such as A Clockwork Orange should absolutely not be banned. This book might not be the easiest to read, but it certainly does address some fundamental elements, in terms of free will and (human) behavior. What is the difference between good and evil? Who decides whether ones actions can be categorized in good or bad behavior? I think it is very interesting for students to think about these questions. They must be able to speak and think out loud, discuss these topics with their teachers.
Ok, there is violence in the book, rape, murder and much more. But honestly, do people really think students are not exposed to such cruelty from other sources? Students have the right to exchange thoughts and ideas about how they experience or interpret novels such as these. Banning a book for disclosing the (painful) truth about humanity doesn’t help at all. Instead it blinds them from reality.
Bea Viergever DENS3A
In the novel ‘a clockwork orang’e the ability to harm is described in an almost glorifying manner; ”while I ripped away at this and that and the other, the others going haw haw haw still, and real good horror show goodies they were..”.(chapter 2). The novel is written from Alex’s perspective in which the reader is taken along a journey of mayhem and soulless behaviour in which the perpetrator is glorified. Personally I find the novel quite disturbing. Not so much in a distasteful way but in a way that the story told is made realistic by the manner of writing and therefor the possible realistic side of human behaviour is revealed which quite frankly scares me.
My opinion on whether the book is appropriate for upper secondary students is bias due to the emotions I attach to the story. I believe in this day and age with the all-consuming internet that surrounds us, our students are more exposed to violence of any kind whether they like it or not and I wonder if they can distinguish the violence they are familiar with from say YouTube videos and the violence as described in Burgess ‘novel. My worry is that violence already has become part of society which is interesting as the novel is dystopian. I believe that adding violent novels however good they are would not add to the social and emotional development of our students which I believe is undervalued when focussing on teaching a particular subject.
The right of free will is being exercised by all kinds of people. Some say that this right is essential, because you would limit yourself otherwise, where one person or government would attain power over others. Yet others say that free will / speech should be limited when it violates the boundaries of someone else. In the case of this story, I agree with the people that say this book shouldn't be banned or censored. There will always be something that might be offensive to someone, but these 'offensive' messages should be accompanied with patient, explanation and mutual understanding. This is something we need to teach our pupils, but I'm not sure if this is the first story we should start with.
0880341
I don’t think any book should ever be banned for violence or whatsoever reason. That is not because I think authors should right about the amount of violence and rape that occurs in a clockwork orange but because of the most holy of books, the bible, which I had to read as a child also is full with violence and other stuff we as a society try to ban out. I don’t think it’s honest to atheïsts when we let a book as the bible be a guidance for millions of believing people but ban out other books which may carry a good message as well. I don’t compare a clockwork orange to the bible for it’s obvious they don’t look alike but just because of the violence in a book we can’t ban it.
In addition, I think this novel stands for the darkest of emotions that may occur in a human soul and the same darkness with which society replies to these emotions whenever a person makes his emotions reality. To me it’s a masterpiece and it shouldn’t be banned or censored.
I find it difficult to say if this book would be appropriate for upper secondary level as I haven’t learned anything about that level and have never taught it. Regardless, I don’t think this book should be banned.
Yes, it contains excessive and graphic violence, but it has an educational purpose. The excessiveness of the violence is used with the intent to clearly illustrate the nature of the situation. Just like extremes are often used in debates to clarify a point. The nature of the dystopian society Burgess wanted to illustrate, its dreariness, wouldn’t be portrayed as well without this boundless violence.
Finally, what is the biggest violence here? The physical abuse committed by Alex and his droogs. The violence you can see, that paints red. Or the mental abuse, which you can’t see, committed by a manipulative government which is even willing to brainwash its citizens as long as it’s in their benefit?
This sort of physical violence is a reality for too many people in the world, even if we don’t see it. But mental abuse, by governments or those closest to you, happens even more often, especially because you can’t always see it.
I believe this book gives the opportunity to discuss many matters that are relevant to youngsters and their development.
Andrea Moreira Santos
0765744
The book shouldn't be banned from school. On the contrary, books should never be banned. It's is horrifying to read about the violence that is in this book, but let's face it: this is also a part of life for some people. The question that is asked regularly when it comes to controversial books is: should we ban this book? In that way, there will never be spoken about the themes that are dealt with in these works. So rather than banning books, people should always talk about the themes that are in it.
This book gives the reader an insight to the darker side of men. Moreover, it shows that we are worse than the animal kingdom: we make other lives a living hell sometimes, even when it's not about surviving in the wilderness.
I think one of the strengths of this powerful novel is the fact that it is replete with intertextualitiy and allusions,that most of the time, serve as a reference to both historical and present religious or political oppressivenesses. It makes us as a reader reflect on our personal lives and the society we live in, with the unsettling consequence that we discover similarities.
The way the dystopian society of Gilead is organized and the way its citizens are dressed reminds us of patriarchic religious sects like the Quakers or the Mormons. In fact it caries similarities with many fundamentalistic religious groups
The horrors that take place are references to all the genocides that took place up to now. It shows the absurdity of the abhorrent things powerful people do to the harmful, in the name of an alleged justice or truth.
Additionally the novel refers to how we are failing to take care of our planet, and to the disastrous consequences this may imply.
No wonder a group of American political activists took the name of ‘The Handmaid Coalition to fight for things like equal rights for all minorities, which unfortunately is very necessary because we are still living in patriarchic times…
Martin Steegmans - Dens2A
I don’t think the book is inappropriate for upper secondary students, nor do I think the book should be banned or censored. I believe that watching or reading (about) violence doesn’t directly mean that people themselves become violent. As a history teacher I watched and read a lot about violence in history and atrocities by a number of groups and people. It didn’t make me violent. Students too can watch and read about all kinds of violence. One student even pointed out to me that there was a site which had footage of decapitations and other violent atrocities. Violence can be found anywhere by anyone who wants to read it. Banning A Clockwork Orange therefore wouldn’t be of any use.
For me, the myriad brutal and sadistic scenes show (some) of the abominable things humans are capable of. Just like the Holocaust and the practices carried out by nazi’s in concentration camps, the scenes show the terrible possibilities of a totalitarian regime. It is debatable if the book is indeed dystopian, or just a version of the kinds of behavior/language/violence mankind has shown in the past. Is it a future we are reading about or is Anthony Burgess showing us what we have already done and should refrain from in the future?
In 1959 Burgess was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Because he wanted to make sure his wife was taken care for he started writing novels in the hope the money his made would support his wife after his coming death. Later though, he discovered he didn’t had a brain tumor, but that the doctors had made a mistake.
I do not think the book should be banned nor censored. The book, in my opinion at least, is more than suitable for upper secondary students to read. The depiction of violence, whether in word or in picture does not necessarily influence a young child, especially if the child is not exposed to violence on a regular basis.
A brain tumor.
In my opinion, A Clockwork Orange is a bit hard to read for all upper secondary students. Perhaps sixth year students from VWO will be able to read and understand the novel. There is so much violence in it and many crimes happening during the novel that it’s understandable the majority of schools have banned the novel from their literature list.
However, the importance of evil as well as good in human nature is one of the most important themes in this novel. Alex believes that people are born evil and learn how to deal with it and avoit it. Alex gives in to his disgusting violent impulses and that sense of freedom is also the thing what makes him human.
Personally, I think all people are born good but are being corrupted by society and/or culture.
S. Ballah
0860327
DENS3A
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