Setting plays a particularly important role in Brave New World. Huxley's novel is a novel of Utopia, and a science-fiction novel. In both kinds of books the portrayal of individual characters tends to take a back seat to the portrayal of the society they live in. In some ways, the brave new world itself becomes the book's main character.
The story opens in London some 600 years in the future- 632 A. F. (After Ford) in the calendar of the era. Centuries before, civilization as we know it was destroyed in the Nine Years' War. Out of the ruins grew the World State, an all-powerful government headed by ten World Controllers. Faith in Christ has been replaced by Faith in Ford, a mythologized version of Henry Ford, the auto pioneer who developed the mass production methods that have reached their zenith in the World State. Almost all traces of the past have been erased, for, as Henry Ford said, "History is bunk." Changing names show the changed society. Charing Cross, the London railroad station, is now Charing T Rocket Station: the cross has been supplanted by the T, from Henry Ford's Model T. Big Ben is now Big Henry. Westminster Abbey, one of England's most hallowed shrines, is now merely the site of a nightclub, the Westminster Abbey Cabaret.
The people of this world, born from test tubes and divided into five castes, are docile and happy, kept occupied by elaborate games like obstacle golf, entertainments like the "feelies," and sexual promiscuity. Disease is nonexistent, old age and death made as pleasant as possible so they can be ignored.
Some parts of the earth, however, are allowed to remain as they were before the World State came to power. With Bernard and Lenina, you visit one of these Savage Reservations, the New Mexican home of the Zuni Indians. It is a world away from civilized London: the Zunis are impoverished, dirty, ravaged by disease and old age, and still cling to their ancient religion.
The settings in Brave New World, then, seem to offer only the choice between civilized servitude and primitive ignorance and squalor. Are these the only choices available? One other is mentioned, the islands of exile- Iceland and the Falkland Islands- where malcontents like Bernard Marx and Helmholtz Watson are sent. But Huxley does not discuss these places in enough detail to let us know whether or not they provide any kind of alternative to the grim life he has presented in the rest of the book.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
Would say that setting plays an important role in a novel? It doesn’t matter if the main theme contributes to the setting, how the characters affect the setting, or symbolism also contributes to the setting, setting is important. Which one can’t help but to ask is how? How is setting important? The setting of After the War was the most important role because it influences plot, characters, and theme/symbolism. Later on this book, these topics will be explained briefly then soon you will understand why setting is important.…
- 735 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
However before the two novels can be thoroughly compared a brief background of both will be useful. Written in 1953, “Fahrenheit 451” is an American novel set in a war torn twenty fourth century where the ironically named “Firemen” control the outlawing of books through extremely violent methods. The narrative follows the protagonist Guy Montang, on his journey from Fireman to the unlikely leader of a group of galvanised intellectual exiles, as his world is overturned by nuclear war. On the other hand “Brave New World” was written earlier in 1932, and is set on the other side of the Atlantic in AD 2540. In this future world the planet has been unified under a “free” world state, eradicating both the need and purpose of war. Although similar to “Fahrenheit 451” in the fact that books to have been banned, a far more diverse range of oppressive techniques are exhibited in Huxley’s novel, ranging from the Bokanovsky process, where embryos are divided to create an identical population, to sleep learning where children are taught to obey the intricate class system of this highly “developed” world. Unlike “Fahrenheit 451”, there are far more characters with each…
- 975 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
The novel was heavily influenced by theories of eugenics, the idea that regulation of genetic traits would improve society. 1932 was also an influential time period in United States history because it was at the height of the depression and many other people at that time period were forced to reevaluate their lives in order of “survival of the fittest.”…
- 2120 Words
- 9 Pages
Better Essays -
Huxley thoroughly condescends the contemporary values of our society in Brave New World. He specifically uses point-of-view, allusion, and motif to create his ironic commentary for which his novel is best…
- 476 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
Of all the works that Aldous Huxley has produced the most intriguing and philosophical one would have to be Brave New World. Throughout his carrier Huxley has written many satirical novels about the flaws of society but none can compare the symbolism and depth that this novel presents. As the above quote suggests the citizens of this futuristic society known as the World State chose to live a life of hedonism devoid of emotions and beliefs rather than suffer any pain. Both Huxley's focus on the tragic flaws of this society and satirical development of the utopian scheme, lead us to believe the hypocrisy of such a utopian state. Furthermore there are many parallels that can be drawn between our way of life and the society portrayed in the book; these parallels include soma, hynopaedic messages and sex. Huxley uses this parallelism to warn us that the path that our society is taking will lead us to damnation.…
- 773 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Brave New World takes place in London circa six hundred years into the future in the calendar after Ford. The World State is now the new government, an omnipotent totalitarian regime governed by ten world controllers. Faith…
- 1370 Words
- 6 Pages
Powerful Essays -
The internal turmoil of a character is a driving force for an author to use in order to develop themes and ideas within his work. This can be seen in Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, where one of the characters realizes that life in the technological world they live in isn’t as great as it seems. John, otherwise known as the Savage, is an outsider to the World State who is educated and well-informed that their society is being destroyed due to the manufacturing of people and loss of individualism.…
- 442 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
A new society that was created by science and technology. The novel, Brave New World, was written by Aldous Huxley. This science fiction novel was published by the publishing company HarperCollins in New York, New York. The original copyright date was in the year of 1932, but was then later copyrighted in the year of 1946 by the author Aldous Huxley. John is the main character, but he is also the antagonist in this novel. He has many qualities that makes him important. He also has people that motivate him to behave and act certain ways. However, John also creates many conflicts with other people in this dystopian society.…
- 832 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
The novel Brave New World written by Aldous Huxley is like no other in fantasy…
- 1318 Words
- 6 Pages
Better Essays -
Life compared to Brave New World and the present world are slightly different, but they both have many similarities. For one thing, life is taken for granted in both societies. Marriage is wasted, in the Savage Reservation the husbands aren't loyal or faithful to their wives, at it happens many times today. The use of drugs became a normal daily routine. Self-indulgences, nothing else matters as long ones self is happy. Weather it is in Brave New World or today's world the arts consist of one thing, sex.…
- 787 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Certain types of novels, articles, or even images has social intentions. One of them is satire, "It is a style of writing, or art, which ridicules or criticizes its subject often as an attempt to accomplish change." Which is what both the Adbusters image and Aldous Huxley's novel Brave New World bring about. Both these pieces have created a question and fear on what these technological advancements can lead a society into. Both Brave New World and Adbusters share the same satirical message that science and technology is created for an advancement in social and cultural developments, however ironically it resulted in a degradation of social and cultural relationships.…
- 835 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
In Brave New World Aldous Huxley wrote about many issues in his time period. Some of these issues still face us today. Examples of this would be the role of women in society, the use of soma, and conditioning. Aldous Huxley did not fully explain what soma was but we can infer that it was some sort of drug used to make people happy. Aldous Huxley wrote about many topics that still face this this world today even if it is unnoticed.…
- 551 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Aldous Huxley, author of Brave New World, demonstrates that use of technology that we use today. Comparing the book to society today, in 632 A.F. The government had owned all of the new studies, almost too much of the experiments. It had way too much control over the social lives of the natural citizens. Every new body that is born becomes of the governments liking, which leaves “natural” child birth out of the picture. It is known as the Bokanosky Process, taking the ovaries out of a woman and hypnopaedic conditioning. The mindset the government had was they were constantly making newer and better technology to create “perfect” individuals without error.…
- 945 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
The Importance of Individualism Every society consists of a group of individuals. Lawyers, garbage workers, fickle teenagers, and even infants all interact and produce a diverse, successful society. Each member of that society contributes in his or her own distinct way. But when individualism is repressed, humanity within the society is lost. The importance of individualism is satirized through exaggerated psychological and physical training, the implementation of an austere caste system, and the censorship of literature and religion by a controlling government in Aldous Huxley's futuristic novel, Brave New World.…
- 824 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Fifty years from now the world that we have become so accommodated with will seem odd and unnatural because of our ever-changing society. Even though circumstances between the two communities may seem different, they still revolve around the same basis. In Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, the society includes many of the same principles that we can see in our everyday life. Even though our world may not seem so closely related to that of Brave New World, many similarities exist. The fact that our worlds share many similarities scares me. Some of the frightening similarities in both civilizations include the rapidly deceasing level of pain tolerance, teaching through technology, and segregation.…
- 744 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays