The Nature of Alex’s Relationship with His Parents and Its Role in the Novel
A dystopian novel A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess depicts post-modern English society using satire and anti-ethical implications (Diez Cobos, 2003). The anti-ethical elements are available in family portrait and its nature, so as its members deviate the traditional family behavior (Davis&Womack, 2002).
Critics have not emphasized the role of the family in the novel, thus they often ignore Alex’s trials to find some kind of home (Davis&Womack, 2002). It is admittedly that the narrator and his “droogs” commit one of the worst crimes in a village house called “HOME” – “a gloomy sort of name” (Burges, 1962) in protagonist’s reception. The negative Alex’s associations might be connected with the traumatic experience of his “pseudo-family,” which revealed in anger to people having a genuine family coziness at their home (Davis&Womack, 2002).
The satire reveals in ironical lack of interaction among the protagonist’s family members (Diez Cobos, 2003). The role of parents in shaping up their son’s character is not significant since they are not attentive to teenager’s occupations, and that is important for depicting ill, dystopian society. Alex’s parents were unable to influence their son in attempts to establish his selfhood or help him to cope with youth violence (Davis&Womack, 2002). For instance, when he needed their support after getting out of prison and treatment with “Ludovico’s stuff,” they did not provide it. Instead, there was a surprise with a lodger, which made Alex think that “nobody wants or loves” (Burgess, 1962) him.
To sum it all, the family in the novel is depicted in a satirical manner as an anti-ethical unit. In such a way there is a lack of communication and mutual influence of the family members, which corresponds to the dystopian and anti-ethical character of the novel.
Works Cited
Burgess, Anthony (1962). A Clockwork Orange, Penguin Books.
Davis, T. F & Womack, K., (Spring, 2002). “O My Brothers”: Reading the Anti-Ethics of the Pseudo-Family in Anthony Burgess’s “A Clockwork Orange” College Literature,Vol. 29, No. 2, pp. 19-36. Retrieved from http://www.wssd.org/cms/lib02/PA01001072/Centricity/Domain/202/O_My_Brothers_Reading_the_Anti-Ethics_of_the_Pseudo-Family.pdf
Diez Cobo, Rosa Maria (2003). Parody and Satire in Burgess “A Clockwork Orange”. Retrieved from dialnet.unirioja.es/descarga/articulo/738681.pdf.
