Very few modern or even classic novels present a psychological tale like the one presented in Anthony Burgess's magnum opus and controversial novel, A Clockwork Orange. The novel follows the protagonist and narrator, Alex, who is not given a last name until the film adaptation. Alex, despite being the protagonist of the novel, is a violent person until the penultimate chapter of the novel. However, the psychology underlying each of Alex's actions rings true and presents a compelling argument about the nature of free will, violence, and what makes a man human. First published in 1962 (McNamee), it follows fifteen-year-old Alex. The novel begins with Alex recounting a typical night of "ultraviolence" in which he and his "droogs" participate. The night includes alcohol, drugs and violence of the worst kind, including rape. Eventually this lifestyle catches up with him and Alex is arrested (Burgess 67). He is offered the opportunity to participate in an experimental procedure that is believed to cure him of his violent behavior and his sentence is reduced (82). When he is released, Alex realizes that the treatment has effectively left him unable to make his own decisions whether to do the right or wrong thing, as well as sucking pleasure out of everyday things he enjoyed such as music and art. 156). Alex finds himself at the mercy of a man he had crossed paths with in the past (167) and attempts suicide (169). In the original UK edition of the book, the final chapter reveals that after waking up in hospital, Alex has finally grown up and settled down, however in the first version published to reach America this final 21st chapter was left out so that the novel ends with the failure of conditioning and Alex's return to his old habits (Jarvis). A document from 1961, a year before the publication of A Clockwork Orange, was recovered