Note: reading the H2onE2 book and post on the Universal Sacrifice is required to understand this material.
Clockwork Orange the book and movie, outlines many aspects of the life and methods used to build and construct a Universal Sacrifice. The story exploits both metaphors and mixed Homeric and Sacrificial elements to hide the Universal Sacrifice from the conscious, subconscious mind. The true meaning of Clockwork Orange is also cloaked by, reversing the timeline; for later scenes are more suited to Alex’s earlier years; especially in regards to his childhood and institutional upbringing. First off, an exploration of little Alex’s youth can be made from many symbolized elements in the story. In the Clockwork Orange story Alex did not hold a job, but his work is well outlined in the suggestive metaphors. The Clockwork Orange story will also be probed for elements that strengthen the link to the medical field. The medical field plays an important role in the final development of a Droog. The conclusion will be, Alex was raised in an alternate Spartan fashion as a warrior and later in adulthood hired to run a healing machine, creating Frederick Nietzsche’s superman’s superman and the quintessential duel persona. The Physical and psychological contradictions, conditioning and experiences create the Universal Sacrifice.
The aspects of little Alex’s youth are well out lined in the Clockwork Orange Story but mixed to make extraction difficult. The first thing you need to understand is how Spartan children were raised in ancient Greece; it is extremely important to understanding and interpreting the Clockwork Orange story. The story might also rather stand as a manual, many parents secretly followed. The first thing to note in the movie is the uniform worn by Alex and his Droogs. In the movie it is represented as minimalistic, mimicking Spartan children who were only given one coat to last the year; often no shoes. The children were left to the elements, to harden them. Often they went cold, shaking the whole night through.
Alex is physically represented as thin, pale and emaciated; it was common in Sparta to starve their male children. This psychologically develops a super human desire to want things they are never allowed to have. In those times a strong desire was mentally needed to win battles, both physical and psychological conditioning kept the Spartan community safe. In modern times it is not easy to starve your children. To simulate the physical and psychological training required to construct a modern Spartan soldier mandated alternative methods. To keep your child hungry, pale and emaciated in modern society required feeding him rotten or raw food; especially chicken.
The symbiotic relationship is well noted in the Family Guy episodes where Peter often fights with a large chicken. The raw chicken would make Alex sick, eventually little Alex would avoid all foods, and indoctrinate himself in his own training. In the Clockwork Orange story Alex’s sickness shows up, near the end and out of context. Hiding the meaning but consciously stimulating the subconscious mind, to both Homeric and Sacrificial elements.
Spartan children are dangerous and a small scuffle could rapidly escalade at school or in the playground. Cafeterias and playgrounds are extremely territorial spaces to children and little Droogies will need to avoid these locations. A Droog choose to avoid these locations for one reason, he knows he has the will to kill, if angered, and perceives every fight as a death match. This was because of his training; the result is an anger that even he fears. The Green Hulk is a metaphorical representation to the Spartan rage.
It is also important for Alex to experience loss, both toys and friends. Fabulous toys would be provided and then pried away. Playmates would be removed and he would be dragged through a series of schools. Schools provided Alex with an experience of abuse and an environment that lacks fairness; this builds a strong distrust and hatred for authority and the educational system. The only success a Droog has in life is seen on the simulated battle ground, the sports field, his teams go undefeated, both physically and psychologically dominating his opponent.
Little Alex is represented as highly intelligent, a natural born leader but comes from a disadvantaged background. Usually people like Alex succeed in life or die trying, considering he was raised to fight on the battle field, long after the others were killed off. There is only one way to remove a Droog’s intelligence and the results, are commonly diagnosed in children that ingest lead based paint chips and certain bullet wounds. These are severe learning disabilities. To give Alex a disadvantage required creating learning disabilities, which would make him hyperactive, sick and nearly unable to read or write.
The lead would be administered in a small lead bead which would be injected in the arm joint under a tendon. This is because only lead in joints produce lead toxicity. Lead toxicity was first documented as early as 200 B.C. in ancient Rome. Julius Caesar’s engineer, Vitruvius, details, “Water is much more wholesome from earthenware pipes than from lead pipes”. The symptoms of chronic lead poisoning consist of neurological disorders, such as permanent and temporary reduced cognitive abilities, nausea, abdominal pain, insomnia, irritability, and excess lethargy or hyperactivity, chest pain, headaches and, in extreme cases, seizures, comas, and death.
There are also linked gastrointestinal problems, such as constipation, diarrhea, vomiting, poor appetite, weight loss, which are common in acute poisoning. A direct link between early lead exposure and learning disabilities has been confirmed by multiple researchers and child advocacy groups. A May 2000 study by economic consultant Rick Nevin theorizes that lead exposure explains 65% to 90% of the variation in violent crime rates in the U. S. The Clockwork Orange movie notes nearly all these health conditions, either directly or indirectly.
As a child, the Droog would have played with the little bead in their arm, as other children would shoot marbles. Testosterone and other drugs would be delivered through fake allergy shots later on. The reference to this is marked in the Clockwork Orange story near the end when Alex states, “I keep having this dream that these Doctors messed around with my Gulliver, you know the inside of my brain.” Lead and mercury poisoning effects the tooth enamel causing cavities and later tooth loss. Properly referenced in Alfred E. Neuman the fictional mascot of Mad magazine. Droogs might even refer to his choppers as Hitler teeth because he was no self made man. Lead and mercury poisoning is noted in Hitler’s tooth loss. A tooth condition fits into the Spartan training because they were required to experience pain. For the Droogies this came in the form of a dentist’s drill, with no Novocain.
The disadvantaged background continues on, because Alex is represented as a thief, which is also the same requirement of Spartan Children. If Spartan children wanted to eat, they had to steal their food, but if they were not smart enough to avoid being caught, they would experience a severe beating. “This would sharpen you up and make you ready for a bit of the old ultra-violence”.
Most kids get into some degree of trouble for being misfits but Droogie children are real gremlins. The difference being, Droogie children would plan and calculates operational mischief for days and even weeks; figuring in a change of clothes, finger prints and even DNA. These events are not planned to hurt and maim but, maybe leave a small trail of blood, “sometimes their own”, usually just a fire or small explosions would be left in their wake. No teacher, windshield or mailbox was safe, later in life feeling both regret and an awkward and uncomfortable mirth. Lastly Droogs receive their driver’s license at around the age of eight from a State of Mind.
Work for old Alex
Alex does not hold a job in the Clockwork Orange Story but references to his work in real life are provided in distinguishable metaphors. To start the white suit Alex and his Droogs wear hold duality and are a metaphor to hospital scrubs. Hospital workers now wear colored and printed surgical suits, but originally they were just white. The white scrubs could be bleached and properly disinfected. The abandon theater rape scene, in the movie is a metaphor to a surgical theater, which was common in the early days of medicine. This surgical theater was a classroom where the students could sit in elevated seats to view surgery or human dissection.
The theater rape scene is also a metaphor to unnecessary medical procedures being performed in the current healthcare system. The gangs that the Droogs fight in the theater wear Nazi German clothing and similar marks. These like many other elements in the story hold dual meanings, referencing both a Holocaust by continuing to use unnecessary surgical procedures, and the origins and time period when the superior medical technology was invented. The knife demonstrated by the character Billy Boy, the leader of the Nazi gang is a metaphor to surgical instruments.
The last few items to mention about the implied work metaphors are in the most distinguishable parts of the Droog’s uniform, the cock protector, eight ball cane and eye ball cuffs. The cock protector is only worn by Droogs, in the movie because they are the only people, other than the doctors that know what unnecessary urological surgeries to avoid. The cock protector worn by the Droogies is physically represented to stave off the Urological tools out of his penis. Utilizing the superior medical technology, a healing machine eliminates the need for any surgical tools. Operating a healing machine is what Droogs do for work. In fact, it is like playing a human video game, which heals people invasively, without surgical complications or death.
The cane is a reference to the lucky eight ball, if you come to get surgery and see a Droogie, you just got real lucky. The canes dual meaning could be an obnoxious reference, calling Alex a lucky man, when in fact he is cursed. Currently, most body stone cases are surgically treated and marginally successful, a percentage will have complications, further infections, requiring some kidney transplants and deaths add up; this is a holocaust equal to any event in history, just white collared. Similar to war, Droogies are exposed to blood, guts and eye balls, but in a surgical setting, not a battle field. Hence the references to eye balls on the sleeve cuffs and blood on Dims suspenders are distinguishable.
Medical field and a Droog
The medical procedure Alex performs, is well outlined and demonstrated in the Clockwork Orange story. Alex operates a lithotripter which breaks up body stones, both kidney and gallbladder stones, with a vibration energy called a shockwave. The shockwave is produced by firing a spark plug in a focusing water bladder; extremely simple technology. The shock wave is focused with X-rays and table movement controls that would mimic any video game, in function and playability. The lithotripsy machine is referenced in the Clockwork Orange movie in many scenes, the psychological treatment when Alex’s eyes are forced open. Within the Beethoven music, which some find as classical perfection paralleling between a good and bad Litho unit design, and all references to the Ultra Violence.
The scene where the stone dunk in brutally beaten by Alex and his Droogies in the tunnel is extremely significant. First note the image of the dark, wet tunnel; this is a reference to a human body. In fact a urine tube called a ureter. The stone drunk man symbiotically represents a kidney stone and the beating references the treatment procedure, which feels like a sharp smack. Note, Alex delivers blows only to the kidney region, no head shots. Also alcoholics are much more likely to experience kidney stones because alcohol dehydrates the human body, allowing calcium and other minerals to precipitate into stones. Infection can also make kidney stones, so dirty people are more susceptible to the disease.
The drugs used by the Droogs are shown in the Moloko Drencro Bar; Moloko being Russian for milk. The milk is not a metaphor but properly represented and used in most modern surgeries. The brand name for the drug is called Diprivan, which is an opiate based drug suspended in milk. The rationale Diprivan is suspended in milk, is because the milk helps give the drug a short shelf life; six hours. Removing the Diprivan from cold storage begins the six hour useful period. After six hours the milk warms and curdles making the drugs dangerous to administer, and hold no street value.
In conclusion Alex was raised to be a criminal, and serial killer. He was also beaten well, starved and denied justice, because this is how you raise a Spartan soldier or the boy imaged in the Virginia state flag. The final step is giving him a conscious which is provided by the healing machine and one loving parent. Operating a machine that reaches inside the human body, without surgery, and heal a disease is the Holy Grail of medicine. It would simulate the power of god and will psychologically change the operator. The scene where Alex is beaten by police, demonstrates Alex simulating Jesus, bleeding from both head and each hand.
Fails to Works on a Droog
Brief loss of sanity would be experienced at times in a Droogies life because of the contradicting upbringing and life experiences. This is referenced in Clockwork Orange with the psychological evaluations near the end. Alex would have met other children involved in the same training, warehoused out of a private school. One psychological evaluation would be performed each grade year to follow a Droogies progress. The evaluation room noted by a human skull placed on the bookshelf. Check out the “Boys From Brazil” – Original Trailer 1978, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZPKpojK8dI.
Alex was not raised to be Jesus, he was raised to kill God, and become a future Lot of preModern Soddom and Gomorrah also represented in sci-fi as Flash Gordon. Remember everything in the Bible has duality both past and future meaning. There is a side effect to this treatment which leaves Droog’s with sever gremlin tendencies and traditions. Personally I feel this was not a well thought out concept, because of the pure nature of the Droog. The extreme contradictions between producing a Spartan and combining him with symbiotic Jesus training, hero and sacrifice produces a Gremlin. Someone able and willing to fix the wrongs in society, but at a price. This is because about half of the time, a Droog thinks of ways to be mischief and giving him a platform or stage is not going to produce any typically imagined results.
Just to give you some ideas, Droogs reject most social values, and status symbols which preModern humans use to build communities throughout their evolution. There is a certain conduct which needs to be performed within a group to even, call yourself a group, tribe or culture. Droogies reject stereotypical behavior and search for extremes to identify with, and maybe call their own. Throughout the Droog’s life he belongs to no group and is mostly alone, due to the extreme differences between his social and intellectual class. Did I mention the risks involved in crossing swords with a Droog. Bad idea, revenge is at the heart of a Droog.
A Droog spends most of his days licking his wounds in life but there is one thing that keeps a sparkle in his eyes, breath in his lungs and pumps his heart each second of the hour, and that is revenge. Without the possibility of revenge all good natured activities would instantly be halted. This psychological element is noted in some of the lingo of the Clockwork Orange story, such as“righty right and Welly Well. Alex does not help mankind just because he feels someone should, humanity is seen as a tool, for his justice, or right is right. If a Droog tells you differently, they lie, and lying is required of Spartan Children.
So in conclusion your savior will be unfulfilling and your sacrifice even more disappointing, but what do you expect when you fear speaking out and let other people think for you. Your future will be just like you past because you have a genocidal government, a homicidal health care system and education system that crafts, young killers within their own school.
