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2012-10628 March 11, 2016

Nicolyn Angelica H. Sese Comm 130
BA Broadcast Communication

Alex Little Revolt

A paper on the film, A Clockwork Orange

My fellow droogs, it has passed on to me the task to make you viddy the intense

propensities of our humble protagonist and how he tried to vred the millicents, charlies and

other chellovecks who are all controlled by the system of cuttersthe state. I am also ending

with the reason why he lost, and ultimately became a clockwork orange.

But before I can do so, I would like to establish facts about the state in which our

protagonist has unknowingly fought against by using Louis Althussers work on Ideology and

Ideological State Apparatus. Althusser explains that the State exists to function as State

power. The State is in itself a repressive apparatus meant to enable the ruling class to ensure

domination over the working class, thus enabling the former to subject to the latter to the

process of surplus value extortion. It makes the ruling class keep on ruling, and the

subjected class (no matter if they are the majority) keep being subjected. For this purpose,

every part of the state consists of these apparatuses that have a specific purpose: ideological

and repressive.

Ideological State Apparatus functions primarily to establish predictable social

relations based on the exploitation of the subjected class by the ruling class, according to

Althusser. This State Apparatus is a hidden part of the state yet the most visible to the

naked eye. These can be as big as the media, religion and education or can be as little as your

own family.
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In contrast, the Repressive State Apparatus is a visible part of the state that works as

the brute force of the State to impose their domination. Obviously, examples of which is the

government, army, police, courts and prison.

To contextualize this, let us all meet Alexander DeLarge, a nadsat malchick who is

infamous for his ultraviolence. He has his own band of mischievous teens composed of Pete,

Georgie and Dim. He was born and lives his life during the Thatcher Administration, a time

when privatization and economic instability prevailsa time when capitalist exploitations

were at its peak.

The state tried to control Alex in many, many ways. However, he was able to dodge

off two ISAs in his time as a teenage boy. Due to his inclination to violence, he is unable to

attend school therefore do not have these same notions as the rest of those in his age group.

He has not also been immersed much with his family (or should I say his family cares little

about him a rather different approach) because of his night adventures as well.

Alex succeeded in this because, as wittily intelligent as he may seem, he was not

exposed to the cultural ideologies that are imposed by the state giving him more free will

and letting his thoughts flow no matter how ridiculously violent it may seem to be.

But, Alexs big mistake was he gained too much attention. His infamy with his group

of thugs made the State wary of him therefore tasked the police (which is an RSA) to

straighten him out. His mistake of killing the old cat lady was the final straw that sent him to

the authorities.

There Alex was subjected to a series of exploits. Being in the prison and all, he was

forced to do work, mingle with those of the same nature and ultimately changing him. His
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exposure to both the prison and the church (an RSA and an ISA) seems a rather brilliant

move. He was forced repent for his actions that lead to his wanting to be good just to get

out of prison. Goodness of course in this context means that he will comply with the state. He

will become a clockwork orange.

However, it disgusted me watching Alex being subjected to the Ludovico Technique

where he lost total control of his senses. I think this is an extreme form of ideological

manipulation plus triggering of a physical reaction that is a perfect State Apparatus being

both repressive and ideological at the same time. It is horrifying to believe such thing as to

be true. But if we think about it, the Ludovico Technique exists in a more subtle way. It exists

as it imposes certain response from us by exposing us every single time with different kinds

of ideologies, either to love or to hate. It makes us believe what it wants us to believe. It

informs us that certain things are wrong. It disguises itself as a form of entertainment with

spectacle and the adoration of beauty. Yes this Ludovico Technique is no other that the

Media.

Going back to Alex, after being subjected to this, he is left to the world again as a free

man. Free in a sense that you are free for as long as you never go against the state. Free

because you can no longer physically harm the state. He is a free man but loses his free will.

One of the hardest part of this was him seeing his friends again and knowing that they have

already subjected themselves freely to the state. Ironically, they became part of the

repressive apparatus, the police force that they abhor before.

Meeting the writer again was actually a good thing for Alex in the end. Even if the

writers intentions were actually bad for him, the writer was the reason that the Technique
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was obliterated. His failed suicide attempt made other subjects such as himself to this

precarious system of the state was made aware of the existence of such malicious Technique.

But Alex revolt still lost.

Yes he was able to be rehabilitated. Yes he was able to become who he was before.

But he still lost. He still became a clockwork orange, or a living organism oozing with juice

and sweetness but has a mechanistic morality. (Burgess, 1986) He became a person but all

his notions, his thoughts, his ideologies are dictated by the State. This is due to the last

chapter of the book that was crossed out by the film. In the story, Alex grows up. Alex starts

having dreams of marriage, and family. He dreamt of becoming part of the state.