Brave New World Society's Moral Decline
Aldous Huxley wrote Brave New World out of fear of society's
apparent lack of morals and corrupt behaviour during the roaring twenties.
Huxley believed that the future was doomed to a non-individualistic,
conformist society, a society void of the family unit, religion and human
emotions. Throughout the novel, Huxley predicts many events for the future,
most of which concentrate on a morally corrupt society. The most important
of these predictions include: greater sexual freedom, over-population,
brain-washing/sleep-teaching, and the use of mind altering drugs. Aldous
Huxley's Brave New World warns of a possible future dystopia, based on
social attitudes and medical advancements of his time.
Huxley's future dystopia is created largely by perverted sexual
freedoms, which in turn cause corrupt individuals, entirely lacking ethics
and morals. Sexual promiscuity appears to be a much more frequent activity
now then it was in the Thirties. Critics blame "...the advent of the pill
for declining morality and indiscriminate sexual activity." Many believe
that each time medicine reduces the risk of unwanted diseases and
pregnancies, society, on the whole, will increase its sexual activity.
Huxley's prediction of promiscuity is based on his iron law of sexuality:
"As political and economic freedom diminishes, sexual freedom tends
compensatingly to increase." A current example of Huxley's belief is China.
China is the last remaining communist regime, it also suffers from having
one fifth of the world's population within its borders. Needless to say,
China's large population is a direct result of a very sexually active
society. Aldous Huxley's fears of the future caused him to write about
sexual freedom and the resulting over-population in Brave New World.
Over-population is another problem which is addressed by Huxley,
and is the direct result of sexual freedom. The fear which Huxley addresses
concerning population control is: "Food supplies cannot grow as fast as
people can, and population growth in underdeveloped countries will jeopardize
the world order." Simply stated the growing population of earth will
consume more than it will be able to produce, unless some form of regulating
births can be created. This is an obvious truth today, as millions of
people are starving each day. The brave new world that Huxley speaks of,
is a warning to mankind concerning its destruction of the laws of nature.
For example, marriage is forbidden, as well as, pregnancies, and mothers
are non-existent because possible children result in abortion.
As analyzed by social critic Neil Postman, Huxley's vision of the future, portrayed in the novel Brave New World, holds far more relevance to present day society than that of Orwell's classic 1984. Huxley's vision was simple: it was a vision of a trivial society, drowned in a sea of pleasure and ignorant of knowledge and pain, slightly resembling the world of today. In society today, knowledge is no longer appreciated as it has been in past cultures, in turn causing a deficiency in intelligence and will to learn. Also, as envisioned by Huxley, mind altering substances are becoming of greater availability and distribution as technology advances. These drugs allow society to escape from the problems of life instead of dealing with reality. With divorce rates higher than ever in the past few decades, it has become evident that lust has ruined the society's sexual covenants. People are indulging in their sexual motives; lust runs rampant, thus strong, long-lasting relationships are becoming a rarity.
In his novel Brave New World, Aldous Huxley illustrates ways in which government and advanced science control society. Through actual visualization of this Utopian society, the reader is able to see how this state affects Huxley’s characters. Throughout the book, the author deals with many different aspects of control. Whether it is of his subjects’ feelings and emotions or of the society’s restraint of population growth, Huxley depicts government’s and science’s role in the brave new world of tomorrow.
People have been unsatisfied with their lives and they want change. Their lives are filled with imperfection. They realize that their lives could be improved if everything around them and themselves were cleanse of the disadvantageous aspect of life. In the case of Brave New World the Controllers came into power sometime after the Nine Years’ War began. They had a “campaign against the Past” after the war where any remnants of the former way of living were destroyed. They considered that the past contained too much imperfection so they had to destroy museums and impede publication of certain books to shield the people from the harm of imperfection. The revolutionaries of that time wanted a new life for the people on Earth where all the adverse elements of life were removed. They desired perfection. A perfection similar to the perfect drug they created, soma, which has “All the advantages of Christianity…; none of their defects.” This drug embodies perfection because it only benefits the user without any maladaptation. And they hated and were discomforted by anything related to the past or anything less than perfect. An example of the displeasure of the imperfect past would be when the students became extremely distressed at the Director’s mention of the concept of fatherhood and motherhood. Their disdain for the past is also delineated through the Controller’s reminder to the students of how they revere the quote of Henry Ford: “History is bunk.” As the Controller reflected upon the old family life of his ancestors he recognizes it as having “appalling dangers” that Freud made a revelation of. He thought by the presences of fathers and mothers in the world is parallel to a world “full of misery…” and “full of madness and suicide...
One major issue that helps maintain social stability in Brave New World is sex. It is thought of as normal for people to be completely open with their sexual nature. It is typical for children to run around naked during recess playing games that are sexual and sometimes homosexual in nature. Every adult is encouraged to sleep with as many different partners as possible. This outlook on sexual nature is quite different from actual accepted views. Today, sex is most widely accepted as a private, romantic event that should take place between monogamous couples. Because sex is a natural need of the human body, people of Huxley’s society feel pleased by being open with their sexuality. Indulging in their sexual pleasures eases their minds and keeps them from questioning the level of freedom they have.
In most countries in our world, society has experienced technological advances to the point of being able to accomplish what Huxley envisioned. In contrast to Huxley’s vision, the moral standards of most nations allow all humans to enjoy basic human rights that embrace family, personal relationships, and individualism. Today’s society is able to comprehend how with the technological advances Huxley’s world could be a reality, but with the privilege of a democratic society, civilization would not allow the medical intervention for reproduction, the conditioning for happiness and consumerism. Work Cited "Brave New World by Aldous Huxley : Barron's Notes" Brave New World by Aldous Huxley: Barron's Notes. N.p., n.d. Web.
Although the United States has gone through a lot of phases that have made drastic changes in how we live today, such as the 1920’s, the Great Depression, and WWII, the Civil Rights movement is ultimately the most significant era as traces of that turbulent phase still remains till this day.
When you were younger I’m sure your teacher asked you and your classmates what you wanted to be when you grew up. I remember some of my classmates wanting to be a fireman, a police officer or a doctor. I wanted to be an educator. Being the naive and carefree child that I was, I had no knowledge of what responsibilities or rules would be packaged into this career. Now that I am in college earning my Bachelors in Elementary Education, my perspective of how a teacher should act and care for their students. As you continue reading, I will discuss my professional responsibility, the code of ethics I will follow, and the high moral standard that I set for myself.
The civil rights movement was a mass widespread movement to arise for African Americans fighting for their equal rights. “In federal courts and in cities throughout the South, African Americans struggled to eradicate the system of racial segregation that denied them dignity, opportunity, and equal protection under the law” (Ayers, Gould, Oshinsky, Soderlund, p. 740). Segregation laws being endorsed were recognized as Jim Crow. Affecting the lives of masses of people, Jim Crow, was entitled after a stereotype song during the 19th century. All over America, states were enforcing segregation with laws, such as, in North Carolina, were books were not be interchangeable among the white and colored schools, however, may well be continued to be used by the race first using them; all marriages between whites and Negros are prohibited and declared entirely illegal in states like Missouri, Florida and Maryland; and no nurse should be placed in a room that a negro men is placed in, Alabama. “‘Jim Crow’ laws at the local and state levels barred them from classrooms and bathrooms, from theaters and train cars, from juries and legislatures” (Civil Rights Movement). During the civil rights movement, various significant events occurred; the Montgomery Bus Boycott, Martin Luther King Jr., and voting rights were three major ones.
There are many causes and reasons on why we are prone or more likely to help certain groups of people compared to another when they are in trouble and in need of our help. One of the reasons that might influence one’s helping behavior is social norm. Social norm of helping can tell us why or when we should help other people when they need our help. Social norm is a putative behavior that an individual is expected to do and obeys to in any particular groups or community that can also be a basis for any acceptable and good behaviors. In other words, social norm can help people to decide on what they should do in any uncertain situations. Norms can also influence someone’s behavior and reasons on why they do what they do.
Can a utopian society ever exist? The answer to that question is a blunt no. Everyone’s different expectations create a world with many diversities. The society in Brave New World is considered dystopian because the people are living under the assumption that their world is perfect. They have a major drug addiction and uncontrolled sexual intercourse, plus a whole lot of other social issues. While our current society may not be perfect, it would be far better off than the society pictured in the novel. Therefore, the society in Brave New World is different from the current society in the United States of America.
Even though the novel, Brave New World was written quite some time ago, Huxley still makes points that are relevant today. By using satire, he warns us on issues such as science, technology and religion. We should slow down our uses of science and technology, especially when using them for abusive purposes. We also need to be careful about letting the government get too involved in aspects of our everyday lives. If we start letting simple freedoms go, we could lose some major ones.
What is the sociological perspective of human behavior? How is it applied to the study of juvenile delinquency?
There are many social problems plaguing the world, including the issue of aging inequality and elders. This social problem is significant because the baby boomers of the 1946-64s are now starting to be the youngest old. Our society is starting to, and needs to, change to accommodate the needs of the elderly. There are many different problems coming with this making people have many political viewpoints, theoretical perspectives, and solutions for this social problem. Baby boomers are a group of people that were born between the years of 1946 and 1964. Just nine months after WW II ended people were having babies at rates higher than ever before. In the year 1946 there were 3.4 million babies were born, nearly 20% more than the prior year. This
...ple is affected by the laws and lifestyles that they follow. Many dislike the idea of change, and reject any new ideas that could alter their societies norm. Civil rights, homosexual relationships, and religious beliefs are three prime examples of how society has been changed over the course of time. Rousseau contradicted himself, stating that religion keeps the peace, however the most bloody battles in history have been over religious beliefs. Change will be adapted to one way or another, even if the morality of the people is set on two different sides. Time, politics, and war will depict the present and the future of society as a whole.
Safety and freedom for social disorder and problems: we could reduce poverty, crime, jealousy, and allow all people to enjoy life by fixing minimum wages to all people and by awarding other people for working hard with extra bonuses.