So i feel really scatter brained right now. I’ll try to kinda sort through random ideas. Brave New World seems really dark and empty, but that there is an underlying meaning in this.
I feel that I could potentially write an essay on how life becomes meaningless in the society depicted in the novel and ponder whether this is also occurring in today’s society. Death is irrelevant and happiness is falsified, so people don’t have any depth to their personalities. The director believes that “Murder kills only the individual-and, after all, what is an individual?”(148) People are not cherished but used merely as robots for the sake of industry. Without having parents or spouses, the characters in the story develop few emotional attachments that need to be mourned. The citizens in Brave New World are apathetic toward death. Death is the equivalent to, “Oh darn! I have to wait at another red light.” In the same way, death would not upset citizens to the point that soma couldn’t help. Since death becomes indifferent, individualism is abolished.
Happiness loses its meaning since it is forged. As we discussed in class, “How can people experience sadness, if they never know true happiness?”
This brings more essay topics to mind. Is Ford an acceptable God for the Brave New World society? He is not a supernatural being. He was a human who was a sinner, not any better than anyone else. Why does society feel that he can define the rules that they live by? Industry is not relevant enough to be the focal point of a society. People will become bored with it.
In my essay, I plan to reference the Bible and any historical books that discuss problems in the government during Huxley’s lifetime. One thesis idea that I have is: In Brave New World, Huxley provides a fictitious warning that life will become a meaningless void, if happiness is falsified and death goes unmourned.
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This was a nice blog post Katie Campbell, short, sweet, and to the point. I just wanted to say that we definitely parallel in the idea about the meaningless life people are living under the Brave New World government. Although, my reasons some what differ from your own. I recognized how the children created in the conditioning center have been given a predestined life with no ability to strive for any better. The immense numbers of hours they go through conditioning teach them that their way of living benefits everyone, so they do not have a reason to strive for any better. I really admire your points about death and happiness. I remember a part in the novel where one character explained that he would not care if he had died because his lifeless body will still be able to benefit their society, linking the symbol of the smoking chimney to this topic. The soma people take is also a great example supporting the idea that “Happiness loses its meaning since it is forged.” With that being said, I would like you thank you for enlightening me with your ideas. They helped my open up my options and ideas to further explore this idea.
ReplyDeleteah katie. i LOVE your idea. i think if you go deeper into it you could really have a kick butt essay.i think to like further develop your thought process you should think about both sides of the arguement so that....well i don't really know how to explain it so i really hope you're getting my drift here! also, i think you can really expand on the idea to make your essay even more possibly kick butt. i would throw out idea but none are coming to mind.
ReplyDeletealright i think i've said what i wanted to say so yeah.