In the movie A Clockwork Orange, the main character Alex is sent to prison for a period of fourteen years due to committing a murder. However, after two years he is given the opportunity to try a new form of treatment known as the Ludovico treatment. This treatment works to change his attitude in the form of classical conditioning. Classical conditioning is process where a stimulus that was previously neutralcomes to evoke a particular response by being repeatedly paired with another stimulus that normally evokes the response. This technique is displayed in the movie as Alex is forced to watch violent movies. The violence is presented with Alex’s favorite musical piece, Beethoven’s 9th. As he watches these movie clips he receives drops of an unknown substance in his eyes that cause him to feel extremely sick. In this case, the violence is the previously neutral stimulus while the Beethoven’s 9th is what it is being repeatedly paired with. As a result, after the treatment whenever Alex sees violence or hears the song he feels sick.
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