Stanley Kubrick’s
1971 A Clockwork Orange uses
Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in an interestingly ironic way. Kubrick sets the
plot in a futuristic world where sex and violence run rampant. When protagonist
Alex finds himself in prison following accusations of rape and murder, he
decides to go through an experimental program in which he will become
programmed to feel sick each time the temptation to harm someone arises. Part
of the experimental program involves watching a serious of videos, one
including Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 as the soundtrack.
Alex learns to
associate Beethoven’s choral symphony with the nausea he feels when exposed to
sex and violence and thus, becomes sick each time he hears the work. The choral
finale of Beethoven’s famous composition is based on the idea of universal
brotherhood. Is it not ironic then, that Kubrick uses this piece in connection
with the disturbance of mankind in A
Clockwork Orange?
