Saturday, November 19, 2011

Brave New World- First Reading

To create conformity, the World State combines indoctrination, social pressures, and the threat of coercive action. Indoctrination consists of repetition of recordings played constantly to children as they mature in laboratory settings. Huxley writes, “’Till at last the child’s mind is these suggestions, and the sum of these suggestions is the child’s mind. And not the child’s mind only. The adult’s mind too-all his life long’” (41). Additionally, the World State utilizes social pressures. The most obvious example of these social pressures and constructs are the classes, ranging from alpha to epsilon. Combined with indoctrination, citizens are taught to appreciate the caste structure and their specific position within it. Social pressures also reduce dissidence by ostracizing those who practice independent thought. Fanny says, “’And then he spends most of his time by himself-alone’” (57). Thus, it is socially unacceptable to practice independent thought. Finally, although at this point not fully developed, threat of corrective actions such as the director sending Bernard to Iceland (108). These three tools together minimize dissent against the World State.
To reduce conflict, the World State appears to have eliminated religion, literature, and art. Everyone has an established social station, and through the use of indoctrination, people are content with their social standings. Thus, class strife and the desire for upward mobility have been eliminated.  On a larger scale, independent thought has largely been removed through the use of the three methods described above.
Happiness and satisfaction have been created through elimination of ambition, as described above, the use of soma, a high standard of living, and abundant leisure activities. Soma is a widespread, officially endorsed drug that creates a sense of relaxation and contentment, perhaps comparable to marijuana. The standard of living in Brave New World does indeed appear to be high, although human life itself is not valued very heavily, as made clear by Foster’s comment regarding an earthquake causing him to have to create more babies (24). Leisure activities, ranging from various forms of golf to community singings, are abundant and widely enjoyed. Additionally, sexual activity is treated as a leisure activity much like a sport. Combined, these factors create apathetic contentment.
At this point in the book, the World State appears more utopian than dystopian. Given our societal emphasis on individualism, the society created seems unpleasant and problematic. But for the majority of its citizens, it provides contentment and satisfaction. It is only through a few individuals that the society’s flaws are exposed. Even then, these flaws do not seem significant when weighed against the happiness felt by the vast majority of the citizenry. However, I predict that Huxley will create a more dysfunctional and dystopian society as the plot develops.





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