The Bibliophiles discussion

This will be a first time read for me but it is something I have wanted to read for a very long time. I hope I enjoy it and I hope everyone else enjoys it as well! Share your thoughts below!

I've read this numerous times and can't wait to hear you guy's thoughts. I don't want to say much to begin with so I don't spoil anyone, but I can say this!

I think Burgess' use of Nasdat (that made up slang) was genius. He used it to distance the reader a bit from what is happening on the page and I have to say, it would be a bit hard to keep reading if you knew exactly what was happening as it was happening, or if you didn't need to concentrate so hard on what Alex is saying.

I think this book is genius on so many levels, and despite the fact that some find it offensive, I find it very, very telling, almost prophetic.

Kandice wrote: "I've read this numerous times and can't wait to hear you guy's thoughts. I don't want to say much to begin with so I don't spoil anyone, but I can say this!

I think Burgess' use of Nasdat (that ma..."

Awesome!! I was already excited to read it but this makes me even more excited! I'm going to run by the library sometime this week to check it out and will start it as soon as I finish The Princess Bride. I've only got 60 pages left. This last month was so busy I fell behind big time! :/ Except for my audio books because I was able to get through those while being so busy ha!

Can I suggest that you do NOT look at the glossary if your copy has one? It's very self-explanatory if you just keep with it and I truly believe it creates a different reading experience if you learn the language as you go on.

Thank you for the suggestion! I am one of those people who would definitely look at the glossary haha. I will make sure to avoid it!

I never even realized my copy had one when I first read it for English and it confused me so bad. I could not figure out if "horrorshow" (i think it was) was meant to be cool or shabby/bad.

I know it can be a bit confusing, but did you eventually figure it out? I think that really makes it easier to read the book. The "figuring out" part, I mean. Otherwise, it's just so incredibly violent you feel almost guilty. By the time you have a grasp on the slang, you've been reading too long to feel guilty anymore. At least that's how it was for me the first time I read it 30 years ago!

In the beginning they ruined a book and beat the person up who was carrying it. I had a hard time feeling sorry for the protagonist (cant recal his name atm) afterward. I mean, the treatment he got was highly questionable but a part of me was glad he got his own dose of helplessness.

I agree! I'm only a little over halfway done but I can definitely feel that feeling of wow that's harsh treatment buuttt...you kind of deserved it dude.

Well I finished the book and you were right Kandice! Reading it without a glossary was better. My copy didn't have one anyway but I am glad I read it without one. It was like immersing yourself in a language and it was definitely much better that way! It was a good read, a little harsh because of the violence but good nonetheless! Glad I finally got to read it!

Did your version have 21 chapters? The original does, but when it was released in paperback in America they decided to cut the 21st chapter because it was too depressing. When Kubrick made the film he never even read the original.

Now that you have finished, I just wanted to say, I never felt sorry for Alex, and don't think we were supposed to. I think Burgess' point is that people are what they are. We can mold and push, punish and reward, but in the end, in the battle of "Nature vs. Nurture" sometimes Nature just wins.

I think it's actually a hopeful idea, despite the appalling nature of Alex and his Droogs. As parents, sometimes we feel we have failed to do our job because our children turn out...badly. Look at it objectively and you will see that there are families with 10 children, 9 of whom grow into outstanding citizens and human beings. The ONE that does not, is sometimes not the fault of parents, but the fault of nature. As people we have to learn when to let go of responsibility.

I thought it was more about the ethics of trying to "fix" people, and how far we are allowed to go with that. Alex's freedom of choice is taken away but only when he hears his favorite type of music or sees/thinks violence, even it its just in self defence. Making him completely helpless from any kind of assault directed to him. Even a rotten character as him should be allowed to defend himself, kinda thing. That he in the end kind of "grew over it" was a bit weak though.

It's that too, but personally, I felt more the idea that sometimes you just can't change people.

Jenny, did your copy have 21 chapters?

I do not know. It ended with a little bit on how he now preferred softer music and I figured that he got his live together, at last. My copy was a very thin hardcover, I have no clue what happened with it actually.