The Evolution of Dim in A Clockwork Orange Anonymous College

Alex is the central character in A Clockwork Orange. He is the narrator and the master/victim of the societal violence. Through Alex, Burgess expresses his theme which is that you cannot force a person to behave through external measures. The person must either decided to be good or not and there is ultimately nothing society can do to force virtue. Anthony Burgess spent much of his career complaining about the decision of the original American publishers to remove the 21st chapter where Alex decides to grow up and become a productive citizen. Yet, Alex’s existential journey from rapist to tightly controlled tool of society to grown-up is less indicative of a society out-of-whack than the non-journey of his “droogs” Georgie, Dim & Pete who symbolize the followers who make up the social order – whether functional or dysfunctional. Of these three droogs, Dim is the most interesting one because in many ways, he is the perfect illustrations of what Hannah Arendt called “the banality of evil.”

Dim & Pete as Droogs

In the early chapters, Georgie, Dim & Pete are placed in the position of followers of Alex. There are several ways to interpret their importance in Alex’s life. Davis & Womack state that they form a...