A “clockwork orange” can be described as something that has a convincing outer appearance yet in the inside is merely controlled by outer influences, such as a clock set in motion by its owner. In A Clockwork Orange, Anthony Burgess takes us into the future where violent criminals are forced to be “good,” and introduces us to Alex, a young teen who engages in a life of rape, ultra-violence, and Beethoven with his “droogs,” or friends, and talks in the slang language of “nadsat.” He goes through various phases in his life, evolving into a more mature level of thinking; each of these phases can be seen as clockwork orange. What makes this novel so realistic however, is how real Alex really is and how each of his phases into maturity represents a part of us.

His youth is characterized as that of a rapist, practitioner of extremely violent acts, and a lover of Beethoven. These three adjectives point out what drives Alex’s actions: emotion. He follows no moral code nor does he even have one. However, he does follow his natural desire to s

Burgess expresses the idea that man can not be completely good or evil and must have both in order to create a moral choice. The book deals upon reforming a criminal with only good morals and conditioning an automated response to "evil." Burgess enforces the idea of the medical model of corrections, in terms of rehabilitating an offender, which is up to the individual. That one should determine the cause and then find an exclusive treatment to resolve that individual's case, then apply it. This is the case with the character Alex, a juvenile delinquent introduced into prisonization then conditioned by governmental moral standards. This lack of personal moral choice imposed upon Alex creates conflicting situations in which he has no control over. This is apparent when trying to readjust into society. As conflicts arise within the spectrum of criminal justice the main focus is revolved around the corrections aspect of reforming the criminal element.

Anthony Burgess was born John Anthony Burgess Wilson on February 25, 1917 in Manchester, England. He spoke eight languages, not including English. Burgess was a composer of music since the age of sixteen years. He taught himself how to read music and how to play the piano. The inspiration for A Clockwork Orange came while during World War II, when his wife was assaulted while he fought. She died about a month after the incident from internal bleeding, along with their unborn child, who was killed during the assault. He compensated by releasing his anger into A Clockwork Orange, in which a scene takes place that mirrors the traumatic incident. Anthony Burgess died at seventy-six, November 25, 1993 of cancer (Cohen).

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