A Clockwork Orange Essay: B. F. Skinner's Conditioning
Many psychologists Many believe that A Clockwork Orange is a commentary on the popular Psychology theory of Behaviourism, specifically B.F. Skinner’s Conditioning. The book’s take on free will and B.F. Skinner’s experiments reflect Burgess’s own belief. Growing up in a Christian family, Burgess was raised on the ideals of free will and morality. Our inherent nature is something beyond our control and thus should not be repressed, even for ones like Alex—ones who are the farthest away from being good natured. Just as humans can be inherently good, we are capable of being inherently evil as well; “badness is of the self… and that self is made by God” (Burgess, 31). Evidently, Alex is inherently bad-natured. “[He] [does] what he …show more content…
Depriving citizens of choice only makes them want to disobey even more. In A Clockwork Orange, a current issue the State is trying to resolve is the high amount of youth gang violence. The State thinks that the solution is to go back to the roots of evil and eradicate it completely. As mentioned before, Alex is picked to participate in a government projects that aims to condition people to only be capable of socially acceptable acts. As a result, “[t]his biting of their toe-nails over what is the cause of badness is what turns [Alex] into a fine laughing [boy]” (31). The government is so preoccupied about finding a way to make everyone good that it amuses Alex. This gives him another reason to be bad, to see the government in even more panic. In relation to this, Freud founded a theory that explains this behaviour. Freud states our psyche is composed of three sections: the id, the superego, and the ego. The id is the component that demands to be satisfied, no matter what immoral act must be done, in order for us to experience pleasure. For Alex, seeing the government struggling and in panic over the acts he and like-minded youth commit only provides him another reason to continue his behaviour. By forcing everyone to be good, Alex’s id feels more inclined to rebel or do acts of ultraviolence in order to continue to be
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708 Words | 3 PagesI decided I couldn’t believe in a God who would let something that terrible happen to a boy like Alex.” (pg.60). This does show that he left for himself and never wondered what it did to the people around him. And if they got hurt because of it. But the book also says “He was polite, friendly, well-groomed… he seemed extremely intelligent,
Alex Mccandless Research Paper
1879 Words | 8 PagesDetachment from reality (delusions), paranoia or hallucinations Inability to cope with daily problems or stress Trouble understanding and relating to situations and to people Alcohol or drug abuse Major changes in eating habits, Sex drive changes Excessive anger, hostility or violence Suicidal thinking. I will go back to this list and connect quotes from the book to prove that Alex was having many of these. For my first Scope I will prove and expand on how he segregated himself from society. The second will be that he through away a successful future and years of work. I will conclude with the fact that he lost the ability to judge the ability of himself and his body leading to his death.
A Critical Analysis Of Opening Skinner's Box By Lauren Slater
874 Words | 4 PagesObscura: Critical Analysis The Holocaust was a tragic event to say the least. Millions of innocent people killed, but how? In the second chapter of Lauren Slater’s book, Opening Skinner’s Box, an experiment is described that attempts to explain the mysteries of obedience and authority.
The Role Of Morality In Ayn Rand's Anthem
1160 Words | 5 PagesConstantly being told how to feel, think, and live can create a world of rebellion as people fight for their rights and beliefs. Equality 7-2521 is proof of the fight that happens in one’s mind and how it is often translated into a conflict with others of different morality. Since the society Equality 7-2521 lived in had a more “popular” morality than the one he created, he was seen as an outcast and never fit in with his brothers. Leaving everything he knew, Equality 7-2521 risked his life to be different from others and was finally able to feel emotions that were trapped in him. He lived with confliction throughout his life trying to understand the morals he was unknowingly creating for himself, but in the end fought for a cause that meant something to him and impacted his world
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Alexander Delarge In A Clockwork Orange
502 Words | 3 PagesAs I read more about Alex, I can not feel sympathy for someone that has no sympathy for his actions. Alex has no remorse for what he has done and he do as he please; “What I do I do because I like to do” (Burgess). Another example of Alex inability to feel compassion is when he raped F. Alexander’s zheena, while making him watch the whole scene; “Grab hold of this veck here so he can viddy all and not get away” (Burgess 22). This scene portrays how foul Alex is, as he goes back to the milkbar we can see that he showed no remorse; “We were all feeling shagged and fagged and fashed, it having been an evening of some small energy expenditure” (Burgess 26).
Superego In Lord Of The Flies
522 Words | 3 PagesOne of Freud’s theories is that the “Id – Ego combination dominates a person’s behavior until social awareness leads to the emergence of the superego, which recognizes that
Freedom In Into The Wild
1044 Words | 5 PagesHe lives only by obeying to his own rules and the rules of nature but not following the law. Alex lives at his own interest. At one point, he is caught shooting a deer and is caught in between trouble because no Alex actually exists and also that he did not have a hunting license. When he Is finally let go he refuses to go get a hunting license because he believes that the government has authority to know Alex’s business and know what he hunts and what he eats. This goes back to the way that he wats to be free but also free from the entire world.
Watson's Brave New World: Classical Conditioning
1272 Words | 6 PagesWhile this movie may not be for everybody it does contain an interesting and controversial commentary on society. It seems that the primary message argued in A Clockwork Orange is that through abuse Alex has been considered cured, people must not be used as scientific experiments even if the experiment is for the greater good of society. The needs of the many do not outweigh the rights of one and by breaking this moral code by the elected officials drastically changes the way the society favors their government and its practices. Social engineering is not the answer to eliminate a disruptive youth culture and maintaining order within society. Violent impulses, sexual urges, the enjoyment of music, participating in social camaraderie are all essential parts of the human experience and eliminating any part of that experience would eliminate what it means to be a
A Clockwork Orange Psychological Analysis
786 Words | 4 PagesAlex has no regard whatsoever for the rights of others and the rights of society; the behaviour mentioned is common amongst psychopaths. Alex, spent his youth stealing, torturing,
Examples Of Psychobiography
2186 Words | 9 PagesThe Id, Ego and Superego make complete sense to any person who might be interests in learning about the Psyche. Freud’s use of the psychoanalytic theory is relevant when explaining my current behaviour in regards to my past experiences that have occurred throughout my lifetime. Freud’s theory does apply to my own life as he made his theory a way to help understand and focus on the behavioural problems of the human being, and to resolve them in a way that forces me to accept my own destructive
A Clockwork Orange Dystopian Analysis
1007 Words | 5 PagesA Clockwork Orange is set in a dystopian society, controlled by a restrictive, tyrannical government and denotes a substantial disaccord between the citizens and the state. The novel is narrated by fifteen-year-old Alex, who speaks in a fictitious argot known as Nadsat. Alex and his ‘droogs’ (5) – Dim, Pete, and Georgie – venture the streets in ‘ultra-violence’ (5), attacking, robbing, and raping whoever they please. One night, Alex is arrested amidst another criminal act, putting his ‘ultraviolence’ to an end. In prison, Alex is offered to take part in an experimental behaviour modification treatment, known as the Ludovico’s Technique (91) – an aversion therapy believed to eradicate his violent tendencies – in return for a reduced sentence.
Anthony Burgess A Clockwork Oranges
158 Words | 1 PagesA clockwork orange focuses around whether the government believe that the class structure and the government running smoothly and properly are more important than an individual's right to exercise their free will whilst simultaneously showing fundamental issues of human nature and morality. Burgess was a practicing catholic which may have influenced his moral views and have a part to play in the portrayal of people being inherently inclined towards violence. Burgess was inspired to write A Clockwork Orange during a visit to Germany in 1961. There, he observed a state-regulated, repressive country filled with communism which turned out to be a fundamentally flawed system according to Burgess as he said it ‘shifts moral responsibility from the
Sigmund Freud's Theory Of Personality
1573 Words | 7 PagesFreud argues that the unconscious molds the personality as it accommodates the id, the ego, and superego (Freud, 1962). Essentially, the id is primitive and is widely believed to already exist at the time of birth. It acts on the pleasure principle, which thrives on hedonism and abstains from pain. However, the id is detached from reality so it can only obtain gratification indirectly such as through reflex actions and mental images (Morris & Maisto, 2013).
Sigmund Freud's Theories Of Personality Development
789 Words | 4 PagesThe first aspect is the psyche which is structured into three, the id, ego and superego, all develops at different stages in our lives. The id is an important unconscious structure that contains basic instinctual drives when we are born. Freud believed that the id is based on our pleasure principle. For example, a baby needs or wants something such as milk, the baby
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