Nadsat is a constructed slang dialect of English with many Russian influences invented by the linguist, novelist, and composer Anthony Burgess. See Concordance: A Clockwork Orange for a full list, along with definitions. It is a transliteration of the Russian suffix for 'teen'. A constructed or artificial language — known colloquially as a conlang — is a language whose phonology, grammar, and/or vocabulary have been devised by an individual or small group, instead of having naturally evolved as part of a culture. ... Slang is the use of highly informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speakers dialect or language. ... Linguistics is the scientific study of language, which can be theoretical or applied. ... A novel is an extended work of written, narrative, prose fiction, usually in story form; the writer of a novel is a novelist. ... Anthony Burgess (February 25, 1917 – November 22, 1993) was a British novelist, critic and composer. ... Transliteration is the practice of transcribing a word or text written in one writing system into another writing system. ...

Description

Nadsat is a mode of speech used by various teen subcultures in the novel A Clockwork Orange. The anti-hero and narrator of the book, Alex, uses it, in first-person style, to relate the story to the reader. He also uses it to communicate with other characters in the novel, such as his droogs, parents, victims, and any authority-figures he comes into contact with. A separate article is about the punk band called The Adolescents. ... A Youth subculture is youth-based subculture with distinct styles, behaviors and interests. ... Clockwork Orange redirects here. ... The Man with No Name, an often cited example of an anti-hero, played by Clint Eastwood The term antihero has a variety of definitions, ranging from unconventional heroes, a protagonist lacking heroic qualities or even one possessing traits antithetical to the traditional hero. ... Alex at the Korova Milkbar Alex is the narrator and antihero of Anthony Burgess novel A Clockwork Orange and the movie adaptation, in which he is played by Malcolm McDowell. ... Grammatical person, in linguistics, is deictic reference to the participant role of a referent, such as the speaker, the addressee, and others. ...

It is not a written language: the sense that we have of the novel is of a transcription of vernacular speech, rather than an implementation of a published, bona-fide dialect. Look up Vernacular in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Nadsat is basically English, with some transliterated words from Russian. It also contains influences from Cockney rhyming slang and the King James Bible, some words of unclear origin, and some that Burgess invented. The word 'nadsat' itself is the suffix of Russian numerals from 11 to 19 (-надцать). The suffix slurs the Russian words for 'on ten' — i.e., 'one-on-ten,' 'two-on-ten,' and so on — and thus forms an almost exact linguistic parallel to the English '-teen.' The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Cockney rhyming slang (sometimes initialized as CRS) is a form of English slang which originated in the East End of London. ... This page is about the version of the Bible; for the Harvey Danger album, see King James Version (album). ...

Nadsat is in fact not so much a language as a register or argot. The words are inflected after English patterns regardless from what language they may have originated. Alex is capable of speaking standard English when he wants to; Nadsat is really a lexicon of 'extra' words which Alex uses to describe the world as he sees and experiences it: In linguistics, a register is a subset of a language used for a particular purpose or in a particular social setting. ... Argot (French for slang) is primarily slang used by various groups, including but not limited to thieves and other criminals, to prevent outsiders from understanding their conversations. ...

Nadsat words are all concrete or semi-abstract: to discuss philosophy Alex would probably have to shift into a more standardised form of English. The fact that a teen language has no abstract words is perhaps Burgess' reflection on the shallowness of the juvenile delinquent's thought processes.

At least one translation of Burgess' book into Russian solved the problem of how to illustrate the Nadsat words - by using transliterated, slang English words in places where Burgess used Russian ones. This solution was however imperfect, as it lacked the original abstractness. Borrowed English words with Russian inflection were widely used in Russian slang, especialy among Russian hippies. Another translation used original English spelling of Nadsat. Hippies (singular hippie or sometimes hippy) were members of the 1960s counterculture movement who adopted a communal or nomadic lifestyle, renounced corporate nationalism and the Vietnam War, embraced aspects of Buddhism, Hinduism, and/or Native American religious culture, and were otherwise at odds with traditional middle class Western values. ...

A comprehensive lexicon lists the terms used in the book with their origins.

Function of Nadsat

Burgess, a polyglot who loved language in all its forms, was aware that linguistic slang was of a constantly changing nature, and knew that if he used modes of speech that were contemporarily in use the novel would very quickly become "dated". His implementation of Nadsat was essentially pragmatic; he needed his narrator to have a unique voice that would remain ageless while reinforcing Alex's indifference to his society's norms and to suggest that youth subculture existed independently of the rest of society.-1...

Burgess was aware of British youth culture in this era - the teddy boys, Mods, and Rockers. These subcultures were all influenced to some extent by American music, movies, language, and personalities. In the near-future world of "A Clockwork Orange" these influences are absent; instead, he seems to be suggesting that it is Russian culture that British youth is looking to for inspiration. This shows Burgess' views on the "vapidity" of youth culture, with Nadsat illustrating the lengths to which the people who use it are willing to go in identifying with whatever is "in" at any particular moment.^{[citation needed]} // The Teddy boy youth culture first emerged in Britain (starting in London, and rapidly spreading across the country) during the early 1950s, and soon after became strongly associated with American rock and roll music of the period. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The definitive Wild One. ...

See also

• A Clockwork Orange
• English to Nadsat
• List of fictional languages
• Newspeak
• Verlan
• Tom Wolfe in Religion and Language
• Wiktionary Concordance: A Clockwork Orange

Clockwork Orange redirects here. ... This is a list of some common words in English (from the perspective of Anthony Burgesss A Clockwork Orange) and their Nadsat translations. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with fictional language. ... Newspeak is a fictional language in George Orwells novel Nineteen Eighty-Four. ... In the French language, verlan is the inversion of syllables in a word which is found in slang and youth language. ... Thomas Kennerly Wolfe (born March 2, 1931 in Richmond, Virginia), known as Tom Wolfe, is a best-selling American author and journalist. ...

External links

• Nadsat Dictionary and Downloadable Translator
• Article and dictionary
• Nadsat Glossary (reprinted from novel)