"Brave New World" vs. "1984"

Book Review # 114211

English > Analysis
Literature > Comparative Literature

A comparative analysis of Aldous Huxley's "A Brave New World" and George Orwell's "1984".

1,165 words () | 0 sources | APA | 2009 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper contends that although many similarities exist between Aldous Huxley's "A Brave New World" and George Orwell's "1984", they are more dissimilar than alike. It looks at how "A Brave New World" is a novel about the struggle of Bernard Marx, who rejects the tenants of his society when he discovers that he is not truly happy. In contrast, "1984" is the story of Winston who finds forbidden love within the hypocrisy of his society. "A Brave New World" is the Huxley's expression of fear that mankind will create a utopia by way of foregoing all that makes life worthwhile whilst Orwell's work rings more sharply of secret police paranoia.

From the Paper:

"Huxley wrote A Brave New World in the third person so that the reader could be allotted a more comprehensive view of the activities he presents. His characters are shallow and cartoon-like in order to better reflect the society in which they are entrapped. In this society, traditional notions of love and what ideally should come out of it have long been disregarded and are now despised: "Mother, monogamy, romance. High spurts the fountain; fierce and foamy the wild jet. The urge has but a single outlet" (Huxley 41). The comparison to a wild jet is intended to demonstrate the inherent dangers in these activities. Many of the Brave New World's social norms are intended to 'save' its citizens from anything unpleasant through depriving them of the opportunity to miss anything overly pleasant. "