Reviews tagging 'Violence'

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

276 reviews

author_d_r_oestreicher's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

  

Brave New World, Animal Farm, 1984, Fahrenheit 451, Lord of the Flies, … and then came A Clockwork Orange. How did I miss A Clockwork Orange? …the story of Alex, aka Your Humble Narrator, told in three acts. First, his life as a fifteen-year-old “ultra-violent” teen. Next his time in prison, subjected to behavioralist experiments to rid him of his violent behaviors. Finally, his life after prison. Two things mark this book, the ultra-violence and “nadsat” slang. The slang is pervasive and slows down the reading. However, the slang softens the violence. When the teens tolchock someone, it doesn’t have the same emotional impact as the English equivalent. A one-of-a-kind classic. 

For my extended notes: https://1book42day.blogspot.com/2024/08/a-clockwork-orange-by-anthony-burgess.html 

Check out https://amazon.com/shop/influencer-20171115075 for Omega Cats Press books and book recommendations. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Murder, and War

alexschrade's review against another edition

challenging dark informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This one is difficult to rate. While I was reading it, I didn't really like it. I don't really care for the Nadsat and I just found that it made the entire book incredibly exhausting to read. BUT since I've finished it, I can not seem to stop thinking about it, so I feel like it definitely achieved it's goal extraordinarily well. Definitely a special book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Rape, Sexual violence, and Violence

pinkfloydtwisted's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Murder, and Toxic friendship

kingspite618's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

rachelbaack's review against another edition

challenging dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Summary:  Young Alex, along with his small group of friends, leads a shockingly violent criminal life until the state decides to take drastic measures to change that. This novel explores the ideas of selfishness and the depth of human depravity, as well as those of youth and the natural course of life. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence

emilyyyhillsss's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

“You’ve sinned, I suppose, but your punishment has been out of all proportion. They have turned you into something other than a human being. You have no power or choice any longer. You are committed to socially acceptable acts, a little machine capable only of good. And I see that clearly— that business about the marginal conditionings. Music and the sexual act, literature and art, must be a source now not of pleasure but of pain”

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Toxic friendship

krmreads2024's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Death, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Forced institutionalization, and Police brutality

Moderate: Gun violence, Sexism, and Suicide attempt

riep's review against another edition

dark sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Please look at trigger warnings first!

I recommend to look up the nadsat-vocabulary early in the reading process, it becomes way easier afterwards. 

A very brutal, honest and deep story. Needs some getting used to, but I definitely recommend!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Hate crime, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, and Murder

deathmetalheron's review against another edition

challenging dark funny mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

If I were more clever + had more time I'd write this in Nadsat, but I'm not and I don't.

A Clockwork Orange is brilliant to say the least, and I think a firm example of where the book is just so clearly a superior format for the storytelling than the film will ever be. Narration in films is often a crutch, but in books it's one of the best tools for establishing character and tone of your story. Alex, the protagonist of the story, is so clearly in his own head that he cannot and will not divulge the details of his misgivings and his deeds. He is clearly a bad person and does horrible things but ultimately the narration is so supremely done because it distances the viewer from these actions--there is no voyeurism here, Alex is evil but so clearly inhuman that I found myself able to read about disgusting or awful occurrences with virtually no misgivings. It's an incredible feat to have been pulled off by Burgess to weave into the text such obtuse vocabulary to build Nadsat, not to mention it was done in three weeks.

Beyond the narration, the commentary being society's obsession with "rooting out" evil and social distortion while at the same time CAUSING said distortion is very palpable. Alex is certainly an evil figure but by the time the story has finished Alex's story feels tragic, but not in a sad way due to the fact it's Alex. ACO sort of feels like a litmus test for authoritarian punishment--do you wish a fate worse than death on the biggest dregs of society?

And it's the final chapter that throws me for a loop and prevents me from going 5/5. On the one hand,

yes, the fact it's so quick and is effectively another story plot line feels very rushed. To be fair I completely sympathize with the American publisher's instinct to get rid of it. At the same time, isn't it incredible how ultimately society's perceived social issues are solved not with intervention but with time? Alex's instincts towards criminal acts disappear the older he gets--while the crimes he commits are heinous, it didn't take the Ludovico technique to fix him--just time. Perhaps the real conspirator of societal evil is not the individual that commits the crime, but the society that enables the method of evil?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Rape, and Violence

Moderate: Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Suicide attempt, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

huntahejdare's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail