Censorship and Satire: Unpacking Huxley's Brave New World

Of all of the world’s ironic masterpieces, Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World is one of the most commonly banned. It is a political satire set far after the time it was written. This satire has not prevented a long list of bans from being placed on it. The book has been challenged a multitude of times for its inclusion of sexual content, drug use, and anti-theism. The book opens on a large establishing section that goes into detail in how advancements have allowed for mass production of humans. The controversial character of World Controller Mustapha Mond is introduced here. The latter half of the section establishes the variety of hypnopedia (Sleep-Teaching) that is used on each caste to teach them about civilized life. The story later shifts to that of Lenina Crowne, a civilized Londoner whose friend Fanny is complaining at how non-promiscuously Lenina acts. Lenina only wants to be with a man named Henry Foster, but, as monogamy is a prime sin of civilized life in 2540 (632 A.F.), Lenina agrees to talk with an alpha named Bernard Marx. Bernard is alienated by his alpha peers for being short and having distinctly non-civilized ideas about life

There are many reasons, with varying validity, for this, but these reasons are also part of why many consider the book Huxley’s best work and why it is still relevant to this day. Censors attempt to cover up the book due to the promiscuity of the characters, the consistent use of Soma, and many of the characters’ hatred of religion, but, in doing this, they overlook much of the literary value of one of the most highly acclaimed satires written in all of human history, an act of hypocrisy whose logical conclusion is best summarized in the words of writer Richard H. Beckham, “If we try to prevent people—especially young people—from being exposed to the tragic, we would have to eliminate much world literature which has been universally proclaimed great.”