"Brave New World"

Paper Summary:

Aldous Huxley's novel, "Brave New World", is considered a classic because while it is futuristic, it is prophetic as well. The novel might be a work of fiction but its significance lies in the fact that it causes us to consider several complex issues that stem from a society that is conditioned. The paper shows that Huxley cautions us of the dangers of a society that yields control to its government and, as a result, becomes a victim of technology and false happiness. The citizens are happy only because they are told that they are happy. Behind the State's lies, we find a society that is much like our own in that is divided into caste systems. The paper shows how Huxley presents freedom and individuality as things that are made to appear wrong or problematic. In addition, concepts like God, religion and poetry are so foreign, they might as well be from another planet. The paper argues that Huxley's social criticisms are frightening because they are closer to the truth than we would hope to believe.

From the Paper:

"As the novel progresses, we find that most the characters are nothing more than robots that take soma on a daily basis to erase any trace of discomfort. While they believe this is the right thing to do in order to achieve harmony, they are only erasing whatever shred of individuality they have. It takes the radical character of the Savage to bring all of this to light but even he has his problems in the end. While the Savage does meet a tragic death, he is correct in his assumptions that life without a balance of good and bad and light and dark is not much of an existence at all."

More papers on "Brave New World" :

• Analytical Essay # 86733 : "Brave New World"
• Comparison Essay # 97349 : "Modern Cloning and "Brave New World"
• Book Review # 73685 : "Huxley's "Brave New World"
• Book Review # 71147 : "Religion in " Brave New World"

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