Assignment 3 - Two Types of Violence

According to Thomas Foster, two different types of violence exist. The first is character violence in which the character directly causes violence to occur. The other occurs when the author purposefully creates violence to further the development of a theme. Examples of both types exist in Anthony Burgess's analysis of evil, A Clockwork Orange. Character-caused violence can be seen almost immediately as Alex, the main character and narrator, and his "droogs" (friends) prowl the streets creating mayhem where ever they step.Among other things, the "malchicks" (teenagers) rape, steal, beat, and drink their way through each evening. This violence is strictly character-caused as their own personalities create the need to be violent. The later type occurs later in the book and is much more mental than physical. After a short stint in prison, Alex is transferred to a mental hospital where the government hopes to successfully test a new prisoner reform program. Alex endures two weeks of mental bombardment as the doctors hope to condition his brain to hate sex and violence. The torturous    reform program over, Alex walks free as a changed man. However, Alex appears to be incapable of functioning in society after his old actions continue to haunt him. All of this results in Alex's attempted suicide. As the reform program was created by Burgess, the violent mental beating Alex endured was a direct result of the author.

The two distinct types of violence used by Burgess have very different effects.The character-caused violence leads to a deeper understanding of the characters and the society in which they reside. A clear mental picture of a violent corrupt world is created in the mind of the reader. Burgess's violence, however, begins to develop the theme of A Clockwork Orange. Questions about the origin of the evil begin to flow through the reader's mind. Without the inclusion of the two types of violence, Burgess's overall picture would by murky and his overall intent veiled.