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Modern society is currently propelling itself towards a culture in which the importance of the individual is being rapidly diminished. This fact is apparent everywhere; from our mollified conditioning of children in which “everyone wins! ” to our insistence that the elderly should reside in community homes as they approach death. The novel Brave New World, written by Aloud Huxley, explores a world in which desire for community and stability has suffocated individuality.
Set in futuristic London, England, this dyspepsia’s government utilizes advanced genetic technology to manufacture and condition humans to fit specific requirements for a predestined public design. However, no matter how much the idea of community is implanted into people’s heads, the desire for individual prosperity remains an innate human trait. This concept, influenced by Huxley life, is illustrated throughout the book by the totalitarian agenda of the world controllers, the suppression of individualism that many characters endure, and the inevitable results of a community-centered society.
The life of Aloud Huxley, author of Brave New World, draws many parallels with the Tory developed in his novel. Huxley was born into a family with a powerful patriarchal tradition, as his grandfather, father, uncles, and brothers all held influential positions throughout his native country of England (“Aloud Huxley- Biography. ” ). His brother Noel was particularly instrumental in the development of Huxley novel, because Noel acted as inspiration for the protagonist, named John.
John is fathered by one of the most influential men in the novel’s society, and both Noel and John struggled throughout their life to find acceptance from their communities. A sad parallel drawn between reality and fiction is that both Noel and John concluded their life by committing suicide (“Aloud Huxley- Biography. ” ).. Huxley also develops a scenario in his story where two “civilized” people from London travel to an Indian Reservation in New Mexico, based upon a real experience from his mid-forties, when he uprooted his family from their native England to live in America (“Aloud Huxley- Biography. ). In both cases, the Europeans discover an entire new culture and sense of community than they were previously accustomed. In his later says, to escape personal emotions, Huxley began to experiment with drugs such as marijuana and LSI (“Aloud Huxley- Biography. “) Likewise, in the society of Brave New World, drugs are used to blur the edges of reality and create a feeling of shallow euphoria in its users. The government actually encourages citizens to partake in a constant high by taking a drug called soma, which is mass-produced distributed liberally among the people.
From emotionally trying life experiences to abuse of substances, Huxley expresses his personal struggles through the story developed in Brave New World. Re Throughout his novel, Huxley demonstrates evidence of how world controllers attempt to dominate society by removing the unique value of the individual. One way the controllers achieve this goal is by formulating people for the specific purpose of occupying a certain Job. To do this, the government constructs Hatcheries, which are essentially genetic engineering factories where the Brave New World report By turbaned reputation requirements are dullest by artificial deterioration.
In these Hatcheries, a certain procedure is employed that greatly reduces the worth of a unique individual: Bookmaking’s Process. This practice identically divides an individual embryo dozens of times, allowing for the mass-production of cloned citizens. On a satirical anecdote, the society of Brave New World actually worships Henry Ford, who developed mass- production process for the automobile. Nevertheless, the people in Brave New World have been conditioned to believe that this removal of originality is beneficial.
This belief is perhaps best demonstrated by a quote from the Director of the London Hatchery, who tells young students, “Bazookas Process is one of the major instruments of social stability! You really know where you are. For the first time in history… Community, Identity, Stability… Elf we could Bookishly indefinitely the whole problem would be solved. ” (Orwell 7). This quote Justifies the government’s belief that building a society from duplicated people will create the most stable civilization. The Director goes as far as to wish for unlimited amount of embryo divisions, creating infinite clones.
However, by manufacturing such large amounts of people as though they are merchandise, the Brave New World society diminishes the inimitable brilliance of the individual. Not only does this society mass-produce cloned embryos, but humans are further removed from their sense of individuality by psychological conditioning implemented by the world-controllers. From the day that they are born, people are instructed that they belong to everyone, and therefore promiscuous sexual activity is not only accepted but positively recommended, even amongst children.
Meanwhile, the government removes an individual’s right to pursue personal happiness by conditioning each human to desire a predestined occupation. The Hatcheries first infuse certain embryos with alcohol to create less intelligent people, and use genetic engineering techniques to create smarter humans. Once born, these people are then conditioned to fulfill their designated Job, which can range from sewage worker to future Director of Hatchery. The controllers train the humans through a technique known as hypo?did, in which ideas are implanted into people’s heads while they sleep to fill their subconscious with partisan notions.
This ensures that citizens will not be tempted to stray from their selected castes, as that would threaten the government’s continually unchallenged totalitarianism reign. Another quote from the Director epitomizes this principle, as he says “And that… That is the secret of happiness and virtue – liking what you’ve got to do. All conditioning aims at that: making people like their inescapable social destiny. ” (Orwell 25). By removing an individual’s natural desire for self-actualization, the state achieves unified subordination from its people.
Although this creates a strong collectivist society, the government’s psychological conditioning ultimately constricts the sense of individuality. However extensive, the incredible measures that he government uses do not completely ensure that all citizens will sacrifice their individuality. For example, in the beginning of the novel a character named Lenin embodies the perfect citizen of Brave New World; she desires only sex and soma and dutifully fulfills her Job as an embryo vaccination.
For most of her life, she has obeyed her social conditioning without other consideration. As the story progresses, however, Lenin deviates from her established conditioning. For one thing, she desires a stable, long-lasting relationship. This is absolutely revolting from the perspective of err peers, who expect nerd to consistently diminish individual sell-worth by sleeping with any man who asks. The reaction of her society proves that Brave New World highlights the problematic moral situation caused by removing individual worth.
Moreover, approaching the end of the novel, Lenin becomes increasingly angry at her civilization to the point that while at work, Lenin accidentally forgets to minimize an egg. Although this may seem trivial, the book states “Twenty-two years, eight months, and four days from that moment, a promising young Alpha-Minus administrator at Anza-Anza was to die of transportations-?the first case for over half a century. ” (Orwell 246). Lenin had been the first person in over 50 years to make a mistake during her employment.
She was different from what her society so thoroughly conditioned her to be-?she was an individual, and revolutionary consequences arose from this variance. Another character that demonstrates rebellion against the society is Hellholes Watson, a complicated man that both epitomizes the community-conditioned standards of his society and the innate desire for individuality all at once. As an Alpha lecturer at the College of Emotional Engineering, Hellholes is a prime example of his a member of caste. However, he feels that his work is empty and meaningless, and wants to use his gifted writing abilities for individual prosperity.
Watson is quoted contemplating, “Did you ever feel as though you had something inside you that was only waiting for you to give it a chance to come out? Some sort of extra power that you arena using – you know, like all the water that goes down the falls instead of through the turbines? ” (Orwell 67). Here, Hellholes observes how the shallow culture in which he lives is stifling his individuality. This dissatisfaction with the World State eventually leads him to read a heretical poem to his students on the virtue of solitude, and inevitably results in him being exiled to an island.
Both Lenin and Hellholes understand the importance of independence from community, and struggle with the bonds of collectivism placed upon them throughout the novel. In Brave New World, characters Lenin and Watson demonstrate the dangers of a community-centered society. However, the protagonist John proves that the only result of stifled individuality is wildly disastrous uniqueness. In the novel, John was raised not in the “civilized” London society but in an American Indian Reservation. For his entire life, John considered himself outsider.
His mother, a Londoner, couldn’t connect with him because he took up Indian traits and was born out of sexual intercourse instead of a test tube, a fact of which was alarming for her. Meanwhile, his Indian peers ostracizes him because he was born by a foreigner and was able to read. In fact, one of John’s favorite volumes was The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. Throughout the story, John embodies the strong, individualistic and emotional patterns found from Shakespearean works. Between his exclusion from community and characteristic influence from the Stratford-upon-Avon poet, John develops into a profound individual.
Unfortunately, later in the novel, John is brought to the Brave New World society in London where is individual nature clashes with the utilitarian agenda. He is shocked by the lack of emotions or unique characteristics that he believed people possessed, as the most expressive that the “civilized” person become is when they make John into a savage spectacle. Although this first gives John the satisfying attention from the community he previously craved, John soon realizes that their shallow notoriety is disconcerting. At one point en says to Bernard, at civilization.
It poisoned me; I was defiled. And then,’ he added in a lower tone, ate my own wickedness. ” (Orwell 232). John becomes overwhelmed with attention, and, strongly opposed to their superficial happiness, desires to escape the overabundance of community and be an individual. To escape from the control of this society, however, is extremely challenging. In the end, John temporarily finds solitude in an old, abandoned lighthouse. However, because the idea of individualism is such a threat to the society, reporters eventually find him and instigate an emotional outburst.
An enraged John engages with the community in a final, orgasmic explosion of hatred and violence that ultimately kills Lenin. When he realizes the atrocity of his actions, having sacrificed his individuality to participate in communal corruption, he hangs himself: finally reaching solitude. Although a sense of community is important in a society, in no way should the essence of individualism be demoted below it. In Brave New World, technological advances have made it possible to genetically clone and designate human beings, defiling our innate self-worth.
Characters like Lenin and Watson experienced repressions from individualism, and John demonstrated that if these repressions become too extreme, calamitous results will ensue. This book eerily prophesiers the way that our own society is heading. Through welfare programs and affirmative action, our government is blanketing diverse personalities and distinct voices because they are more concerned with amalgamating the whole of society. Any Rand said in her similar volume Anthem, “To e free, a man must be free of his brothers. That is freedom. This and nothing else. ” (Rand 95).
Just as illustrated in Brave New World, the essence of individuality must be promoted above all else, for the progress of humanity relies solely upon the self-actualization of the sovereign man. In any society, upholding the power of the individual always defeats preserving the mediocrity of many. Indeed, if a house is built from identical bricks it will undoubtedly be a strong structure. But it will also be plain, basic, boring. It will not be beautiful or incredible; it will not scrape skies, it will to push the limits of architecture nor, most importantly, will it take a breath away.
Works Cited “Aloud Huxley- Biography. ” The European Graduate School. The European Graduate School, n. D. Web. 2 Novo. 2013. Orwell, George. 1984. New York, N. Y. : Signet Classic, 1977. 1-259. Print. Rand, Any. Anthem. Student deed. New York: New American Library, 1961. 1-105. Print. Honor Code I did not cheat or plagiarism while completing this assignment. This assignment represents my own work in my own words unless otherwise documented with proper citations. I will not share test information with other students after I have taken a