A Touch of the Ludovico Technique

I am very fond of the idea of the changing and unchanging nature of mankind. One of my favorite books (and movies) is A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess. Now, if you have seen the movie, you probably think I am a sick and strange person. But once you push past the smut and the "nekkids", you are faced with this picture:

A teenage boy living in a socialistic England commits acts of violence and debauchery and gets arrested. He gets treatment and is presented with an opportunity to become a better person.


Now, I am interested with both directions taken. In the book, Alex goes back to his ugly, ultra-violent lifestyle, but later, in the final chapter, he realizes he wants to be a better man. The movie cuts out the final chapter of the book, so we are left with Alex remaining a cruel and wicked young man.

I love both of those ideas. Because they are both so true in today's world. Some people, when forced to look at their own lives, will come to the realization that they are not the people they should be, and they will learn and grow from there. Then there are people (the majority of people in my opinion), who will either do what is right for a while, just because it was temporarily satisfying, or they will not change at all for a few reasons...

1. The change is too difficult to make. It is much easier to live like we are accustomed to living, which is often times why criminals always end up back in jail.

2. The change does not bring about the necessary results. Being a good person didn't make me feel good. I wasn't any good at being good.

3. The change is inconvenient. Being a good person is not going to really get me the things that I want when I want them (which is right now).

I have lumped the majority of people in the "unchanging" category. Especially Americans. Because only in America (okay, lots of places) can we get away with it. Americans are typically the only people I know of who are encouraged to be set in their ways, because it's your God-given right.

The catch is that in order to have functional relationships, you must be willing to change and grow and learn. And you must be willing to accept the fact that you can be wrong. That you can make mistakes. You must be able to love someone more than yourself.

And the sad thing is... I don't think people are willing to do that as much anymore. I think that people, especially Americans, are raised with the idea that you have to be satisfied right now and if you are in a relationship with someone who doesn't satisfy you every minute of every day, then it "wasn't meant to be." We give of ourselves less and less and expect from others more and more.

But despite how hopeless it all seems to try and find goodness in manking, what makes it so interesting is that you can never really know for sure. There is always a chance you will be pleasantly surprised.