A Clockwork Orange: Antony Burgess

Fifteen-year-old Alex doesn`t just like ultra-violence - he also enjoys rape, drugs and Beethoven`s ninth. He and his gang of droogs rampage through a dystopian future, hunting for terrible thrills. But when Alex finds himself at the mercy of the state and subject to the ministrations of Dr Brodsky, and the mind-altering treatment of the Ludovico Technique, he discovers that fun is no longer the order of the day. The basis for Stanley Kubrick`s notorious 1971 film, A Clockwork Orange is both a virtuoso performance from an electrifying prose stylist and a serious exploration of the morality of free will.
In his introduction, Blake Morrison situates A Clockwork Orange within the context of Anthony Burgess`s many other works, explores the author`s unhappiness with the Stanley Kubrick film version, analyses the composition of the Nadsat argot spoken by Alex and his droogs, and examines the influences on Burgess`s unique, eternally original style.