Aldous Huxley, Brave New World (1932)

SUMMARY: In the novel Brave New World, Aldous Huxley crafts a future society with a single "World State" governed by a totalitarian regime and a rigid social structure. Each group is taught to be satisfied with their role in society and to distract themselves with consumerism, casual sex, and a drug called soma. The novel follows the story of Bernard Marx and Lenina Crowne. Bernard is an outsider in the society, and has feelings for Lenina, who is very much integrated into the World State soceity.  Together they visit the Savage Reservation in New Mexico, where they find aging, emotion, religious rituals, and family units, all of which are foreign and shocking. They meet John and his mother Linda, both of whom are residents of the reservation, and they all travel back to London.

As John’s “keeper” Bernard enjoys a newfound status of popularity and in the process loses much of his unique perspective. John issue with the culture of the World State, and he expresses his concerns to Mustapha Mond, a leader of the State. Mond defends the status quo and tries to convince John of its value to no avail. John confesses his love to Lenina, reciting Shakespeare and speaking of marriage. She responds through sexually advancing. John loses respect for her and Lenina feels devastated. Mond offers John a place on the Island, where he won’t have the same restraints and conformity costs that people have in the World State, but John refuses. He instead retreats to a lighthouse. John takes place in an orgy, and the guilt leads him to commit suicide.

MAJOR THEMES: Consumerism and complacency: Throughout the novel, the characters living in the World State are constantly consuming. They desire the lavish, and are only being satisfied with the extravagant. They play complicated games such as Obstacle Golf, ride in helicopters, and consume soma in order to maintain a state of contentment. When John confronts Mond about the way of life in the World State, Mond admis that the heads of state do not want citizens to ever be satisfied with what they have, but to always want what is new and to seek enjoyment through the acquirement of new goods. In such a culture, there is a level of complacency reached as citizens are too focused on consumption to ponder deeper questions, seek hard truths, or question the status quo. When this proves insufficient to feel satisfied, they self-medicate with soma, numbing themselves to the world that surrounds them. At the end of the novel, Mond says:

“Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the overcompensations for misery. And, of course, stability isn't nearly so spectacular as instability. And being contented has none of the glamour of a good fight against misfortune, none of the picturesqueness of a struggle with temptation, or a fatal overthrow by passion or doubt. Happiness is never grand.”

If happiness is what those in the World State feel, is it worth giving up knowing the ‘truth’ as John the Savage knows it? Huxley is asking, rather than telling, his readers to think about the value of many of our most prized principles and human qualities.

Structure vs Free Will: The novel presents contrasting philosophies about how to best achieve societal harmony. Much of the industrialized world of the novel, the World State, has become ruled by unchecked Fordism. The motto of the World State is “Community. Identity. Stability.” and the State emphasizes happiness (though superficial) and order above all else. This carefully controlled society is achieved through extensive planning, brainwashing, limited access to information, and conspicuous consumerism which leaves citizens seeking nothing more from their lives. Additionally, the World State creates new people through a process called “hatching” in which scientists carefully select and produce new generations, allowing different embryos varying access to nutrients and predetermining factors such as intelligence.

In contrast stands the Savage Reservation, home of John the Savage (born naturally by his mother). On the Reservation, family structures continue to thrive, and residents are allowed to read, practice religion, and uninhibitedly feel. John feels deeply connected to the works of Shakespeare, and embodies a (somewhat misguided) idealism not seen in most residents of the World State. John is often held back by self-hatred, a trait not seen in residents of the World State, making his emotional freedom a mixed blessing, which ultimately leads to his downfall. It is believed that Huxley did not mean the novel to be a whole-hearted support of either societal approach; rather, it asks questions for the reader to try to answer. Both have their benefits and drawbacks, and both are incomplete (and unacceptable) solutions to the complicated problem of human social structures.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Aldous Leonard Huxley (1894 - 1963) - novelist, essayist, and philosopher - wrote Brave New World in 1932. The crash of the U.S. economy following the “roaring 20’s,” a period marked by excessive consumption and a culture of pleasure-seeking, likely informed the novel’s portrayal of a culture pacified by consumerism as a moral imperative. Huxley additionally drew inspiration from a visit to the Billingham Manufacturing Plant, a large chemical processing plant run by industrialist Alfred Mond. Huxley dubbed the plant a “triumphant embodiment” of the principles of order, structure, and planning - major themes in Brave New World. Nearly blind since his mid-teens, Huxley also became known for his essays and satirical works in support of pacifism and universalism. He would receive seven Nobel Prize nominations throughout his lifetime, winning none.

“O wonder!
How many goodly creatures are there here!
How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world,
That has such people in't.”
     —William Shakespeare, The Tempest, Act V, Scene I

Entry Authors: Grace Benedik, Austin Channell