![]() In their minds, “flaws impede happiness” and things of the past hold no value. BNW citizens focus on objects and their perfection. Aside from the conspicuous demand for conformity and stability, the new World State centers on materialism as well. This event and others signal Huxley’s warnings about a change toward the BNW society. These people are too brainwashed to even fathom what message John the Savage had tried to impart. They continue to live their lives the way they had been. The sad part of this final act of desperation is that it has no effect on the BNW citizens. This epiphany causes him to commit suicide in the end. However, his location is later discovered and he realizes that he cannot escape the brave, new world. He tries to become an individual again, familiarizing with nature and his spiritual side. John subsequently begins to punish himself, apparently trying to purge his soul of the BNW society. ![]() Ultimately, this forces him to move into the lighthouse to seek seclusion. He cannot stand the lack of meaningful relationships, the lack of individuality of thought, and constant need for instant gratification. John also realizes that “if one’s different, one’s bound to be lonely.” This is the way he feels after a while in the city. He recognizes these precious gifts of life and is astonished when he encounters civilization. #Brave new world book characters freeOn the contrary, he does possess individuality, free choice, and an imagination. Having been brought up on the Reservation, he is not brainwashed by BNW conditioning. John the Savage, however, detests all aspects of this revolution. If the opposite ever happens to occur, “there’s always soma.” This drug dependency is the ultimate source of instant gratification and connotes a “quick fix mentality.” It indulges the senses, instills happiness, and therefore promotes stability. Everyone gets what they want, which is also programmed, and everyone is happy. The main focus is conformity and stability. Individual thought and freedom, as a result, are nonexistent. Their likes and dislikes are already programmed. During embryonic development, people are “manufactured with distinct characteristics to maintain the stability of society.” In essence, a person’s social class and intellectual capacity is predetermined at birth. The most prominent tool in attaining this revolution is genetic engineering. This “sleep teaching” conditions people to think a certain way for the rest of their lives. Another ongoing process is the use of Sigmund Freud’s hypnopaedia method. As adults, they will then avoid nature and contact, therefore, with lower class people. One example is the electric shock treatment of babies, training them to dislike and avoid flowers. The BNW society takes advantages of their findings to modify the behavior of all people through various stimuli, response systems, rewards and punishments. Two techniques of instituting this are those of Pavlov and Skinner. All their thoughts and actions are conditioned to a set pattern. From the moment of conception, a human is subjected to technological conditioning that continues throughout their lifetime. This is made possible through developmental conditioning. Everyone thinks the same, acts the same, and generally lives the same in their respective class orders. This element precludes individuality and will later incite conflict. Its motto becomes “community, identity, stability,” and anything that promotes social disorder is quickly eliminated. Attributing their new foundation to the industrial enterpriser, Henry Ford, the BNW society begins to take shape. ![]() ![]() The answer is found in advanced technology. Near the end of this period, humanity as a whole grows tired of war and destruction, and therefore decides to search for answers through other means. This revolution is a direct result of a “Nine Years War:” a war so devastating that it nearly extinguishes life on earth. This future is indeed a “revolution of revolutions” in that societal norms go through a radical change into completely innovative, but sometimes corrupt, forms. Huxley, however, focuses on warning the reader about problems that may develop in the future such as promiscuity, lack of intimacy, etc. He does so by portraying a future BNW society that is supposedly perfect in every way. In the science fiction novel Brave New World, Aldous Huxley shows a “revolution of revolutions” resulting from technological advances. ![]()
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