Isolation In Brave New World

Isolation is an aspect of life that many struggle with and is consequently a common trait in literature. Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World imagines a new future: one where monogamy is blasphemous, promiscuity is encouraged from a young age, families do not exist, and happiness is expected through the use of narcotic drugs. Anyone who rejects this status quo is considered an outsider. Mark Haddon’s Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime shows the world through the eyes of fifteen-year-old Christopher whose perspective and outlook on life is more critical and observant than that of the people surrounding him, making it difficult for him to function well in his community. While taking place at two different times in two completely different

places, both novels involve main characters, Christopher, Bernard, and John, that do not fit into their societies.
In Brave New World, Bernard is the first character encountered that deviates from the societal norms.

Instead of wanting to have relations with multiple women, he instead wants to spend time with only one girl named Lenina. After Bernard proposes that the couple go for a walk, Huxley writes, “‘Alone with you, Lenina.’ ‘But, Bernard, we shall be alone all night.’ Bernard blushed and looked away. ‘I meant, alone for talking,’ he mumbled. ‘Talking? But what about?’ Walking and talking - that seemed a very odd way of spending an afternoon.” (Huxley 89) Bernard wishes for a more long term emotional connection with Lenina than just a brief physical one. He would like to walk and talk without any expected promiscuity involved. This desire for emotional intimacy isolates Bernard and makes those around him see him as odd and

unorthodox.
John, like Bernard, also rejects the sexual standards of the “New World”. He displays his dissatisfaction with the promiscuity of the community when Lenina arrives at his home and pursues him. Huxley states, “‘Kiss me’; she closed her eyes, she let her voice sink to a sleepy murmur, ‘kiss me till I’m in a coma. Hug me, honey, snuggly…’ The Savage caught her by the wrists, tore her hands from his shoulders, thrust her roughly away at arm’s length.” (Huxley 194) John reacts violently and with disgust to Lenina’s advances because he feels as though sex should be reserved for married couples only. The problem with this belief is that in the Fordian civilization marriage is taboo. As a result, John cannot exist as a functioning member of the community because his beliefs are too radical for him to adopt the culture of the new world.
Christopher’s way of looking at the world, like Bernard and John, differs from that of the people around him.

This is apparent when he is arrested for hitting a policeman that got too close for comfort. Christopher describes, "He said, 'I have spoken to your father and he says that you didn’t mean to hit the policeman.' I didn’t say anything because this wasn’t a question. He said, 'Did you mean to hit the policeman? I said, 'Yes.'" (Haddon 17) The way that Christopher handled this situation was unique. Most people would brush this incident off as an accident to prevent further hassle and to avoid getting into trouble. For example, Christopher’s dad tried to make it look like an innocent mistake to avoid getting into more of a debacle. Instead of following suit, Christopher admitted that he intended to hit the policeman because he does not believe in lying. This shows that Christopher’s thinking process is more black and white than most people’s. If something is true, he will not lie about it under any circumstances because he thinks that lying is always bad. His individuality makes him stick out in society because he does not practice certain social cues, like bending the truth when necessary, that the rest of the people in his life

do.
Bernard and John in Brave New World and Christopher in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime exhibit individualistic traits that isolate them in their societies. Bernard values emotional connections which separates him from the sexually-driven community surrounding him. John sees sex as a sacred thing reserved for married couples which isolates him because married couples do not exist in the New World. Christopher has his own straightforward way of thinking that is not in sync with the social cues of his community. As a result, all three characters are ugly ducklings in their storylines which therefore prevents them from fitting in. The familiarity of the isolation that Bernard, John, and Christopher experience in both stories is what makes the novels so appealing.