The World State in Brave New World by Aldous Huxley seems to be perfect; everybody is employed, taken care of, and free to amuse themselves however they please. “People are happy; they get what they want… they’re well off; they’re safe; they’re blissfully ignorant,” says Mustapha Mond, remarking on the world he oversees(220). His tightly controlled society gives everybody the ability to be content all the time. However, their freedom is actually an illusion. Through their hypnopaedically and medically internalized caste system, their aversion to strong emotion realized through taking drugs and seeking instant gratification, and their libertine attitude towards sex, the citizens of this Brave New World are deprived of the beauty of the human …show more content…
Due to this pre-destiny, the government is denying these individuals one of their fundamental rights — right to choose, which is necessary for maturity. Due to of their hypnopaedic conditioning a the various castes all have “rails along which [they’ve] got to run”(220). Their abilities are ranked from highest to lowest, from Alphas, who are given optimum growth conditions, through to Epsilons, who are stunted their physical and mental growth, which is okay because Epsilons “don’t need human intelligence” to perform their jobs(15) This seems like a good idea, because “even Epsilons perform indispensable services…[and they] don’t really mind being Epsilons”(74). In fact, this phrase is taken from the hypnopaedic conditioning that all children in this society receive — a repetition of phrases while a child is sleeping, until “the sum of the suggestions is the child’s mind”(28-29). Even basic prejudice is “wedded indissolubly before the child can speak” (28). While every person is engineered to be content with their jobs and “unescapable social destiny”, this system allows for no upward mobility or gain on the part of the individual(16). This system allows for no endeavor, no triumph, and no real satisfaction, only “civilized infantility”, while it is these very choices which …show more content…
The World Controllers have turned sex into another form of consumable amusement, like Electro-Magnetic Golf or going to see the feelies. Libertine attitudes towards sex are ingrained in the citizens minds, first from their lessons, such as “Elementary Sex”, and then reinforced throughout their upbringing(27). It is seen as abnormal and concerning when a little boy seems “rather reluctant to join in the ordinary erotic play,” because now children are expected to be sexually active. Because “every one belongs to every one else,” there are no longer bonds of love or desire to bring two people together, and sex is not a bonding act between two individuals, but an easily encountered form of amusement(40). Nobody has to live in desire unfulfilled. Bernard recognizes the flaw in this system of conduct, saying, “we went to bed together yesterday— like infants— instead of being adults and waiting” (94). Like with many things, an unlimited supply of sexual activity and partners lowers its value. This more mature decision to wait is overruled by their baser desires and inescapable hypnopaedic conditioning wrought upon them without their consent in their childhood
Abraham Lincoln once said, “Folks are usually about as happy as they make their minds up to be.” Thus, implying happiness can be determined by ones mindset. However, Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World creates a vision of a utopian society that achieves happiness by altering the mindset of its populace to believe they are happy. In a society depicting such a strange ideology of the future, people are no longer as happy as they make their minds up to be, but as happy as the government allows them to be. Canadians are repugnant to Huxley’s world despite the many similar issues between Canada and the New World State. The excessive use of chemicals, obsession with consumerism and illusion of happiness prove that the Canadian society is becoming increasingly similar to the Brave New World.
Imagine a world where everything is controlled by the government. Imagine a world where science, literature, religion, and even family, do not exist. Imagine a world where citizens are conditioned to accept this. This is exactly how the world is portrayed in Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. The focus of the World State is on society as a whole rather than on individuals. Some characters from the novel have a harder time accepting the conditioning. Through these characters, we learn the true cost of a government-dominated society. In Brave New World, Huxley conveys that a totalitarian government will provide happiness and peace by abolishing individuality and free thinking.
David Grayson once said that "Commandment Number One of any truly civilized society is this: Let people be different". Difference, or individuality, however, may not be possible under a dictatorial government. Aldous Huxley's satirical novel Brave New World shows that a government-controlled society often places restraints upon its citizens, which results in a loss of social and mental freedom. These methods of limiting human behavior are carried out by the conditioning of the citizens, the categorical division of society, and the censorship of art and religion.
While reading Aldous Huxley's Novel Brave New World readers experience a world unlike any other. A world where being promiscuous and the use of drugs are not only legal but considered a "must" for a fully functional member of society. This world isn't a world full of democracy or the democratic process, it's a world where a virulent caste system dominates. A world where people are bred to be workers or leaders. The people of this society believe that they live in the perfect world. All these images are satirically portrayed through the authors use of Mockery and parody.
...t can be so traumatic that we choose not to leave our fragile emotions into hands of others. After all of these setbacks, we are more willing to settle for just pure sex. This is in hopes that it will be stress-free and painless. What we don’t know is that commitment-free relationships come with many consequences. Brave New World shows how escaping pain, especially in terms of relationships, can actually cause greater suffering. By the World State essentially forcing these relationships on their citizens, they are also depriving them of vital immunity to suffering. They are being deprived of the wisdom that is accompanied by heartbreak. The consequences that Aldous Huxley was warning about are extraordinarily relevant to the contemporary American society.
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.
From the moment of birth, to the moment of death, humans are flooded with emotions both good and bad. Individuals are continuously seeking fulfillment, some failing to find it while others succeed. Many seek adoration; love, accomplishment and greatness. In literature, authors take the readers on journeys that allow imagination, granting the possibility for the reader to grasp inner desires and decide what is truly important in life. Literature allows readers to dive into a different world where happiness and fulfillment is plentiful and eternal, also described as a utopia, while other pieces of literature direct the reader into a world of dissatisfaction which is a dystopia. Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World is in 26th century England. With the help of advanced technology and drugs, happiness fills the lives of the people living at that time period. But, the people are missing out on one of the most important feelings of life. That is sorrow or unhappiness. The society in Brave New World is very different from modern-day society; many aspects of life are removed such as family, monogamy, and religion. The citizens of Brave New World live in false happiness with all the necessities of life provided for them but have the lack of an inferred deeper satisfaction. In Brave New World happiness is the lack of unhappiness because the inhabitants can never truly know what happiness is without experiencing true unhappiness. The lifestyle in Brave New World is built on the notion that happiness is the only thing necessary in one’s life. This novel suggest that the reader should seek things besides happiness because the citizens in the World State live bleak and monotonous lives which show the faults in this so-called ‘perfect’ society. In thi...
Freedom in the United States Essay submitted by Unknown No other democratic society in the world permits personal freedoms to the degree of the United States of America. Within the last sixty years, American courts, especially the Supreme Court, have developed a set of legal doctrines that thoroughly protect all forms of the freedom of expression. When it comes to evaluating the degree to which we take advantage of the opportunity to express our opinions, some members of society may be guilty of violating the bounds of the First Amendment by publicly offending others through obscenity or racism. Americans have developed a distinct disposition toward the freedom of expression throughout history. The First Amendment clearly voices a great American respect for the freedom of religion.
Imagine living in a society where there is no sense of independence, individual thought or freedom. A society where the government uses disturbing methods that dehumanize people in order to force conformity upon them. Taking away any sense of emotion, It would be very undesirable to live in a society with such oppression. Such society is portrayed in Aldous Huxley's novel Brave New World. The World State uses social restrictions to create permanent artificial personalities for people within the society. The World State also uses controlled groupings of people to brainwash them further to be thoughtless people with no sense of individualism. Lastly, the World State uses drugs to create artificial happiness for people, leaving no room for intense emotion which causes people to revolt against the World State. Within the novel Brave New World, it is seen that the World State eliminates individuality through social restrictions, government controlled groupings and the abuse of drugs to maintain control of the population.
"'God isn't compatible with machinery and scientific medicine and universal happiness.'" So says Mustapha Mond, the World Controller for Western Europe in Aldous Huxley's novel Brave New World. In doing so, he highlights a major theme in this story of a Utopian society. Although the people in this modernized world enjoy no disease, effects of old age, war, poverty, social unrest, or any other infirmities or discomforts, Huxley asks 'is the price they pay really worth the benefits?' This novel shows that when you must give up religion, high art, true science, and other foundations of modern life in place of a sort of unending happiness, it is not worth the sacrifice.
Most forms of entertainment in Brave New World somehow relate to sex. For example the “feelies” are pornographic movies with a more advanced plot line and the tremendous bonus of experiencing the same things as the actors on the screen. The government actually encourages sex and promiscuity among its citizens; if a person is not promiscuous they are seen as outcasts. Sex is not a private matter and is openly practiced. To ensure that sex’s purpose is for entertainment the government makes only thirty percent of the female population fertile. This ensures that the population will not view sex as a form of reproduction because the majority is not capable of sexual reproduction. The more partners a person has the more popular the person is. Due to this a person is discouraged from having a long-term relationship with one person. If they have a long term relationship their loyalty to the government and Ford is in question, as evidenced early in the book when Fanny was scolding Lenine for not being with more men when she had the chance. “And you know how strongly the DHC objects to anything intense or long and drawn out. Four months of Henry Foster without having another man - why, he’d be furious if he knew,” (46). One night-stands are common and expected; the idea of marriage is practically nonexistent. Because it is common for the people of the World State to talk constantly about sex and are encouraged to have sex frequently, it is not seen as dirty, shameful or something to be discussed behind closed doors. From a young age children learn about sex and contraceptives. Children are forced to use contraceptives every time they have sex. They are encouraged to participate in sex play from a young age. Those who do not wish to participate are taken to a psychologist for an evaluation. Unfortunately, these actions are steadily becoming common in our own
For years, authors and philosophers have satirized the “perfect” society to incite change. In Brave New World, Aldous Huxley describes a so-called utopian society in which everyone is happy. This society is a “controlled environment where technology has essentially [expunged] suffering” (“Brave New World”). A member of this society never needs to be inconvenienced by emotion, “And if anything should go wrong, there's soma” (Huxley 220). Citizens spend their lives sleeping with as many people as they please, taking soma to dull any unpleasant thoughts that arise, and happily working in the jobs they were conditioned to want. They are genetically altered and conditioned to be averse to socially destructive things, like nature and families. They are trained to enjoy things that are socially beneficial: “'That is the secret of happiness and virtue – liking what you've got to do. All conditioning aims at that: making people like their inescapable social destiny'” (Huxley 16). Citizens operate more like machinery, and less like humans. Humanity is defined as “the quality of being human” (“Humanity”). To some, humanity refers to the aspects that define a human: love, compassion and emotions. Huxley satirizes humanity by dehumanizing the citizens in the Brave New World society.
In the year A.F. 632 no pleasure is denied to the populous. Hypnopaedia is used as a device to form the moral education of children. What is taught through this method is not true ethics, but warped actions trained by words. An illustration of this is in the teaching of Elementary Sex to children. The society that Huxley created was one where having sex often and with many people was a positive course of action. Anyone who did not have multiple partners, such as Lenina or Bernard, were considered a blight to society. Society as a whole uses the act of having sex as relief from pain and emotions. A person does not have to lust for someone they merely set up a time and place for them to meet and have sex, and it is completely accepted by everyone. When sex is not enough to relieve a person from pain or loneliness they take soma, a drug that stimulates them into happiness. Unlike the drugs of present day there is no set backs from taking soma, no headaches after use, and after all “One cubic centimetre cure ten gloomy,” (60). Finally, there is the concept of feelies, movies that you can feel what the actors are doing. These feelies are nothing more than glamorized porn movies giving the participants quick orgasmic feelings without effort. All these materialistic pleasures are used to substitute an individuals basic emotional needs and to give them a false sense of happiness. Huxley used this warped view on what today’s society deems morally right and wrong to reveal how shallow the citizens of the brave new world truly are.
In Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, truth and happiness are falsely engineered to create a perfect society; the belief of the World Controllers that stability is the the key to a utopian society actually led to the creation of an anti-utopian society in which loose morals and artificial happiness exist. Huxley uses symbolism, metaphors, and imagery to satirize the possibiliy of an artificial society in the future as well as the “brave new world” itself.
In Vienna, sex is a regular way to pass time. Sex is what I would call ‘the Viennese way’. This is so, as it appears to me that sex plays an integral part of their lives. Hence, it makes it quite comfortable for me to say that sex controls them. When it is time to celebrate, they turn to sex, during their times of boredom, they turn to sex. When Vienna’s land was undergoing turmoil, they used sex as a main source of distraction. For most people in Vienna, there is nothing that sex is unable to fix. In this essay I will be discussing how the people in Vienna allow sex to control them. First allow me to give you some backstory so that it is easier for you to follow along.