Who Is Sigmund Freud's Theory In Brave New World
Modern psychology saw its roots grow in the late nineteenth century as a budding psychologist developed his theories of the mind. This psychologist, Sigmund Freud, is seen as the father of modern psychology, and his theories continue to influence culture and psychology today. One of the most popular applications of Freud’s theories is in Aldous Huxley’s novel Brave New World. In this novel, a dystopian society’s foundation upon Freud’s theories, and the flaws of doing so are revealed through various characters.
Freud’s theories, while groundbreaking, are continually under debate. His theories depended on lust and violence being the core of humanity and received great acclaim during his lifetime. However, Huxley was not fond of Freud, as many of his contemporaries were. He took Freud’s theories to the extreme in his novel. By doing this, he pokes fun at the ridiculousness of the time period in which Huxley lived, the 1930’s, that had become so infatuated with Freud and his theories (Saracino, 10). Huxley, being friends with fellow author D.H. Lawrence, whose “passionate engagement with Freudianism, as well as his …show more content…
Here, people live without the restraints of the government of the World State, have their own religion, and have more freedoms than those living in the World State. However, they have the constraints of parents and monogamy and believe in a savage god that needs displays of dedication through self-flagellation.
In the novel, the Oedipus complex and the dangers of having parents is demonstrated through the character John the Savage from one of the Reservations in what was formerly the United States. John, whose mother was a former citizen of the World State and was not used to monogamy or even the concept of parenthood, experiences jealousy and rage towards those who sleep with his mother or have intimate relations with her. He becomes violent, attempting to murder the man his mother sleeps with
Freud’s theories, while groundbreaking, are continually under debate. His theories depended on lust and violence being the core of humanity and received great acclaim during his lifetime. However, Huxley was not fond of Freud, as many of his contemporaries were. He took Freud’s theories to the extreme in his novel. By doing this, he pokes fun at the ridiculousness of the time period in which Huxley lived, the 1930’s, that had become so infatuated with Freud and his theories (Saracino, 10). Huxley, being friends with fellow author D.H. Lawrence, whose “passionate engagement with Freudianism, as well as his …show more content…
Here, people live without the restraints of the government of the World State, have their own religion, and have more freedoms than those living in the World State. However, they have the constraints of parents and monogamy and believe in a savage god that needs displays of dedication through self-flagellation.
In the novel, the Oedipus complex and the dangers of having parents is demonstrated through the character John the Savage from one of the Reservations in what was formerly the United States. John, whose mother was a former citizen of the World State and was not used to monogamy or even the concept of parenthood, experiences jealousy and rage towards those who sleep with his mother or have intimate relations with her. He becomes violent, attempting to murder the man his mother sleeps with