In Brave New World (1932), Aldous Huxley at first presents a utopian society that lives in equilibrium. Huxley goes on to unveil that society is actually a dystopian world ruled by a controlling government. In particular, a drug known as soma illustrates one of the many negative sides of this new world. Soma is a drug that the government dispenses and people take to escape everyday living. In turn, the role soma plays in society creates many problems. These problems include people’s inability to face their problems, soma can lead to one’s death, and soma creates a false illusion of happiness. To begin, soma is a burden to civilization because it prevents people from ever really dealing with their problems. In the new world, the government …show more content…
A great example is a role that soma played in Linda’s early death. Sadly, Linda couldn’t face the harsh reality that neither society nor the Director would accept her, hence the non-stop soma holiday until her death. Huxley demonstrates the negative health effects of soma when he states, “[g]reedily she clamored for ever larger, ever more frequent doses…She took as much as twenty grams a day. ‘Which will finish her off in a month or two…[o]ne day the respiratory center will be paralyzed. No more breathing. Finished’” (Huxley 154). Most alarming is the inevitable death sentence Linda receives because of her continual consumption of soma. Moreover, Huxley magnifies the controversy of using an escape drug like soma when he says, “John raised objections. ‘But aren't you shortening her life by giving her so much?’ ‘In one sense, yes. But in another, we're actually lengthening it…[s]oma may make you lose a few years in time…[b]ut think of the enormous, immeasurable durations it can give you out of time’” (Huxley 154). Huxley argues that the drug seems innocent but in reality actually shortens the length of a person’s life. Unfortunately, the citizens may be aware of this but enjoy the hedonistic pleasures the drug fulfills, blindly accepting the fatal risks involved with taking …show more content…
In society, soma becomes such an integral part of life that many people can’t seem to find a joyful state of mind without the drug. Linda is a prime example. All she desires after meeting with the Director is to consume soma because she enjoys the holiday and the fact that it doesn’t hurt afterward like peyotl (Huxley 154). In truth, she is perceiving happiness while simply escaping the sorrow, at the cost of her life. Huxley goes on to explain why soma isn’t really a source of happiness when he writes, “‘Don't you want to be free and men? Don't you even understand what manhood and freedom are…I'll teach you; I'll make you be free whether you want to or not’” (Huxley 212-213). John gives this speech when the Delta workers are receiving their ration of soma right after his mother has just died. Huxley includes John’s speech to contend that soma is really holding people captive to the false belief that they are happy. In this way, Huxley shows that soma makes people more ignorant of real life, while constantly driving them to seek a nonexistent
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 a perfect society, humans do not need to resort to drugs to keep society in balance. In Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, society is based on keeping everyone happy- and if for some reason someone becomes unhappy then there is always soma- the “perfect” drug. Humans are conditioned from the very start to be happy while performing their specific tasks. “We also predestine and condition. We decant out babies as socialized human beings, as Alphas or Epsilons, as future sewage workers or future Directors of Hatcheries.” (Page 13) Brave New World’s society is built on keeping everyone happy and keeping everyone working in balance with civilization. However, without soma, Brave New World’s society wouldn’t function properly. The soma helps to keep the society moving, always working to keep production moving, just like Ford’s assembly line. However, is there something wrong with depending on a drug to keep a society working?
The future of the world is a place of thriving commerce and stability. Safety and happiness are at an all-time high, and no one suffers from depression or any other mental disorders. There are no more wars, as peace and harmony spread to almost every corner of the world. There is no sickness, and people are predestined to be happy and content in their social class. But if anything wrong accidentally occurs, there is a simple solution to the problem, which is soma. The use of soma totally shapes and controls the utopian society described in Huxley's novel Brave New World as well as symbolize Huxley's society as a whole. This pleasure drug is the answer to all of life's little mishaps and also serves as an escape as well as entertainment. The people of this futuristic society use it in every aspect of their lives and depend on it for very many reasons. Although this drug appears to be an escape on the surface, soma is truly a control device used by the government to keep everyone enslaved in set positions.
Mustafa Mond says “Euphoric, narcotic, pleasantly hallucinated” (Huxley 53). Mond makes a statement and says people take soma to escape their mind and have happy hallucinations. Mustafa Mond says “soma is Christianity without tears”. Mond is convincing John that soma solves unpleasant emotions and avoids inefficiency and conflict. The most important thing for people is to eliminate all negative emotions and feelings. Lenina feels “A gramme is always better than a damn . . . A gramme in time saves nine . . . One cubic centimeter cures ten gloomy sentiments . . . Everybody’s happy nowadays . . . Every one works for every one else . . . When the individual feels, the community reels . . . Never put off till tomorrow the fun you can have today . . . Progress is lovely” (Huxley 89). Lenina is saying soma is better than anything, and a gramme a day produces happiness to
Chemicals are excessively used to achieve youth and happiness in both Brave New World and in Canadian Society. The prime example being the use of drugs to achieve a euphoric feeling and to escape something versus dealing with it in both societies. In Brave New World, Soma, a hallucinogenic drug, is a pertinent part of life that is a necessity to keep their world in order. When a member of society is unhappy, it is a natural instinct to consume soma. When Lenina is upset John does not join her after their date, Lenina thinks, “One gramme, she decided, would not be enough; hers had been more than a one-gramme affliction” (Huxley 171). Lenina uses soma to prevent unacceptable unhappiness in the Brave New World, as many Canadians use antidepressants as a simple fix to their unhappiness. The utilization and prescription of pharmacotherapy for depression has increased from 3.2 to 14.5 million between 1981 and 2000 in Canada (University of Toronto Magazine). ...
In a society where the life is easy and no hardships exist it is inconceivable to the public to think that anyone would want anything else. No one is poor, no one is lonely. When times get rough, or doubt settles it, citizens just medicate with soma and feel no strong emotions. In their drug induced state they drift back into a sense that everything is perfect, without soma, citizens have no way to handle inconveniences of life. For instance, when Lenina visits the reservations with Bernard she desperately feels “in her pocket for her soma—only to discover that, by some unprecedented oversight, she had left the bottle down the rest house” (Huxley 111). She needs her soma, she cannot cope with regular events without it. The people in the society, whether Epsilon or Alpha, have every comfort they could dream of, never getting ill, never aging, never having to deal with any heartache. In order to not experience strong emotion people cannot get too attached to each other, tying into the idea that everyone belongs to everyone. When citizens have this mentality the concept of death is simply a passing event, it holds no true importance. When Lenina and Henry are flying above the crematorium, a puff of air, once a life, makes the helicopter shoot up for a moment. Instead of seeing this as a sentimental ending of a life, Lenina simply claps her hands and remarks on how enjoyable flying up was. Her ignorance displays how the way people live their lives in the World State affects how they perceive death. The World State is filled with essentially clones; no one is truly a free thinker, which is why Huxley writes in John. John is the purest form of individual that is present in Brave New World. John Savage is viewed by the society as this sort of animal, untamed and different.
In the novel, the World State values happiness instead of truth. Soma blinds Brave New Worlders from seeing anything that is negative or distasteful. Drugs and alcohol help people escape reality and many people use because the truth is too painful for them to endure. Drugs transport people into a different world, their own world where they are on top because all of their problems have disappeared for the moment. But, without sorrow there is no real happiness. If someone is happy all the time, they wouldn’t even realize that they are experiencing joy, because that is all they are used to. They have never experienced any other type of emotion. Anger, fear and misery make people appreciate happiness because it is desired. In Brave New World, there is no such thing as desire as Mustapha Mond, the controller, explains, “People are happy; they get what they want, and they never want what they can 't get...And if anything should go wrong, there 's soma” (Huxley 220). The government doesn’t understand that desire creates an appreciation for happiness, and when it is finally attained, it is a very strong emotion. When anything is handed to someone, as joy is in Brave New World, the value is drastically decreased. But, when there is anticipation or work is put in, the value will be justifiable. If Americans continue to rely on products for happiness, there will be no
Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley, portrays a future society where people are no longer individuals but are controlled by the World State. The World State dominates the people by creating citizens that are content with who they are. Brave New World describes how the science of biology and psychology are manipulated so that the government can develop technologies to change the way humans think and act. The World State designs humans from conception for this society. Once the humans are within the society the state ensures all people remain happy. They program these humans to have needs and desires that will sustain a lucrative economy while not thinking of themselves as an individual. Huxley describes the Worlds State’s intent to control their society through medical intervention, happiness, and consumerism which has similarities to modern society.
Their way of chemical persuasion was used through the use of “the original soma. . . . an unknown plant” ( Huxley “Chemical” 296). “The intoxicating juice expressed from the stems of this plant” was enough to bring pure happiness and lure the people into their unethical society (Huxley, “Chemical” 296). This stimulant drug made the citizens believe that “the drinkers of the soma were blessed in many ways. Their bodies were strengthened, their hearts filled with courage, joy and enthusiasm, their minds were enlightened and in immediate experience of eternal life. They received the assurance of their immortality” (Huxley, “Chemical” 296). To the people this drug was a prize; not realizing how this prize, given by the Controllers, is actually affecting them. The leaders, however, are fully aware that the “sacred juice had its drawbacks. Soma was a dangerous drug-so dangerous that . . . ordinary mortals might even die of an overdose” and they still encouraged the doses of Soma to be heavily relied on (Huxley, “Chemical” 296). Citizens who often took too much could temporarily go into a soma holiday, in which they are technically in a sleeping coma. This coma was repeated weakly; overdosing on a drug for relief was permitted. However, one can control the amount; “in small doses it brought a sense of bliss, in larger doses it made you see visions” (Huxley, “Chemical” 296). Regardless, it did not matter to the citizens what happened because “the experience was so transcendently blissful and enlightening that soma drinking was regarded as a high privilege. For this privilege no price was too great” (Huxley, “Chemical” 296). To the citizens of the new world, soma was not just a treat; “it was a political institution, it was the very essence of the Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Happiness guaranteed by the Bill of
The impracticality of the utopian ideal is explored in Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four and Huxley’s Brave New World. Both authors suggest that a lack of familial bonds, the repression of human individuality, and the repression of artistic and creative endeavors in order to attain a stable environment renders the achievement of a perfect state unrealistic. The lack of familial bonds, in both novels, contributes to the development of a dystopian society. This lack of familial bonds is evident through genetic engineering, the use of names, and a commonly used drug, soma.
Humans seem to be obsessed with finding a certain substance to rely on for a better life. In almost every culture on the planet, such substances have been imagined, like the glorious ambrosia of the ancient Greek gods, the forbidden fruit by which Eve was tempted, or, in the World State, the censoring soma. Soma ‘enhanced’ the lives of the people of the World State by allowing them to ignore reality, suppress negative emotions, and amplify positive feelings, but through the consumption of soma, the citizens also censored themselves to the full awareness of their monotonous lives and hopeless state. Lenina, a character noted for her continuous use of soma, visits a reservation where soma is not used. After seeing humans experience ‘real emotions’ that were not under the influence of the drug, she, “...felt herself entitled, after that day of queerness and horror, to a complete and absolute holiday.” (Huxley, pg. 149) The wo...
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.
holiday from the facts,'" (Huxley 243, 244). The people are never unhappy, there is nothing in society to bring about strong emotions, and any desires they have are almost immediately fulfilled. If anything is wrong, the people can take soma, a drug that makes you happy and high and has no adverse affects. One might be led to believe that this society is a perfect place to live, since all the inhabitants are eternally happy. The...
...dure the hardships of life in order to enjoy the blessings. Sadness is a defining characteristic of a human being: “In spite of their sadness-- because of it, even; for their sadness was the symptom of their love for one another-- the three young men were happy” (Huxley 242). Sadness is a symptom of joy. Loss is a symptom of love. But Huxley knew that it is worth it to feel both pain and happiness instead of nothing. Without these defining characteristics of humanity, all that remains is a stable, well-oiled machine, certainly not a group of human beings.
Since this book was published in 1932, Huxley based his ideas of the free sexualization of women and the heavy use of drugs from the conusmerism and rising economic growth in America during the 1920’s. When Huxley wrote about the negative treatment of women in the “brave new world”, he was most likely referring to flappers, who were often characterized by their slitted skirts, short bobs, and their “debutante slouch”, made their appearance (Sauro). The “modern” behavior of the flappers, like their tendencies to smoke and drink with the men and obvious makeup, were considered improper at the time (Benson). In Brave New World, Lenina “[thought] of herself as meat” (Huxley 53), and women were often referred to as “pneumatic” and were judged by their looks (Huxley 60). The rising economic growth was a huge deal in the 1920’s because it led to excessive spending; people illegally drank because it was exciting, and “bootleggers (makers and suppliers of alcohol) became modern-day heroes” (Benson). With the extra money to spend and time to spare, people partied more frequently; these parties at the illegal bars were laden with drinking (Benson). In Huxley’s novel, the soma represents the heavy use of alcohol and drugs. People wasted their feeling away with alcohol just like how the citizens in the novel took soma to numb their feelings and