Brave New World

Imagine living in a world without mothers and fathers, a place full of faceless human clones. This is the society portrayed in Aldous Huxley's 1932 novel entitled Brave New World. Huxley describes a futuristic society that has an alarming effect of dehumanization. This occurs through the absence of spirituality and family, the obsession with physical pleasure, and the misuse of technology. In this world, each person is raised in a test tube rather than a mother's womb, and the government controls every stage of their development, from embryo to maturity. Each new human is placed into a certain class, such as Alpha, Beta, and so on. The embryos are manipulated chemically to stimulate or to retard their physical and mental growth. By repeating phrases over and over while the children sleep, the government can condition each person to accept his role in the world around him and to behave in what the government deems to be a "safe" manner. This creates a society full of human clones, completely devoid of personality. Every person is conditioned to love three things: Henry Ford, their idol; soma, a wonder drug; and sex.
 
 

In Huxley's book, he portrays several unique characters who struggle with the society. Bernard Marx is a deformed upper class Alpha who constantly struggles with his own shortcomings. A young woman named Lenina Crowne becomes romantically involved with Bernard, and they both travel to a Savage Reservation, one of the last places on earth where people are allowed to live without the modern amenities such as soma, birth control, and helicopters. Bernard and Lenina meet a young boy and his mother Linda, originally from the civilized world. Linda had become pregnant many years ago, which was an illegal and incredibly disgraceful offense, became lost on a trip to the Reservation, and had to remain there. Both savages are brought back to the New World, and the young boy named John, known as the Savage, becomes quite a celebrity. But the differences... [continues]

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