In "A Clockwork Orange," Anthony Burgess emphasizes that goodness is not a mere choice, but an inherent quality. The idea suggests that when individuals are deprived of the ability to make choices, especially moral decisions, they lose their essential human characteristics. This reflection points to the importance of free will in defining humanity.

The quote highlights the relationship between freedom and morality. It argues that true goodness emerges from the capacity to choose between right and wrong. When these choices are taken away, individuals risk becoming mechanistic, straying from the core of what it means to be human.