“What's going to be then, eh?” Reading Anthony Burgess’ "A Clockwork Orange" (1962) at the posthuman turn

In the post-war context of the 1960’s, nearly the entire world was still marked by certain tragic events such as the two World Wars, the rise of totalitarian regimes, the emergence of nuclear weapons and the Cold War, which was still in its infancy. In this particular period where human technology and violence were perceived as threats, many authors put their pens to work in order to warn the citizens of this grieving world. Amongst this literary landscape, one author seems to stand out for his unprecedented ethical treatment of key issues of the time such as violence, technology and human nature. Indeed, Anthony Burgess, more specifically in his novel "A Clockwork Orange" published in 1962, offers readers of his time a new perspective on violence and the relationship between humans and technology that can be described as visionary. However, it will be demonstrated in this research that it is only in the eyes of a 21st century reader that this visionary aspect can acquire its full significance in view of a phenomenon that we are all experiencing nowadays, perhaps even without knowing it: the posthuman turn. Indeed, "A Clockwork Orange", mixing technology and ethical reflections in a world where a 15 year old criminal is tortured to become a model citizen, is dealing very contemporary issues that Anthony Burgess engaged with. Without knowing it, he even reflected on what will be the foundation of a key concept of our time, which is none other than the concept of posthumanism, a discourse concerning the possibility of a post-human world through a specific approach to the humans/technology relationship. Precursor or not, it is therefore an author ahead of his time who is analysed here through a new reading of his novel, "A Clockwork Orange", at the posthuman turn.