Brave New World

Introduction

Brave New World was written in 1932 where violence in society was still rare. In contrast with Blade Runner in 1992, time had past WW2, Vietnam War, Kennedy assassination, Hiroshima, Gulf war. The bad violence that has occurred through the past century is frighteningly evident that our futuristic world.

Brave New World is a social and political warning; it satirizes totalitarian and communist? Consumerist certainly ideology presenting an allegory encompassing the fears and beliefs of Huxley's contemporaries, however at no stage a happy medium is presented, as misfit John the savage' discovers, escaping further contamination from the filth of civilized life by living in isolation- seemingly his own 'inescapable social destiny. Excellent john is the symbol of humanity (Birnbaum, 46-63) the soul who dcan not belong in either world John relocates away from the predestination and conditioning of the 'castes' of humans of the new world, theories made plausible by Huxley through the reality of scientific processes such as hypnopaedia and decanting.

Symbolism of Brave New World

In this novel, Aldous Huxley challenges the readers' traditional beliefs, showing two entirely new religions that at times seem perfect, and that at other times seem fatally flawed. Beliefs that are questioned are those about the fundamental nature and characteristics of a religion, (Huxley, 25-96) the function of prayer, the eternal quest for happiness, our notion of free will, and also the belief concerning the use of a religion as a device for comfort. The two religions that are new to the readers are the religious consumption and artificial and false enlightenment of the "Brave New World" and its counterpart, the ancient and savage Christianity, mutated to include in its belief structure an American Indian tradition of self-flagellation as well as pagan ritual. Huxley is trying to speak of the ills of religions, but not denounce them completely. Instead of having one perfect or "right" religion, (Huxley, 192-195) he is trying to get the point across that religions serve a common purpose.

The citizens of the "Brave New World" are consumers, their only purpose being to work and consume. Their religious practice involves buying mass-produced items and participating in sexual activity freely. Their God is Ford, the creator of the Model T, that letter coincidentally being their symbol of faith, the counterpart of the Christian cross.

The symbol of a "T" is important to the religion for two major reasons. First, it signifies the model of existence that the citizens follow in their day-to-day lives. As best seen by the character of Lenina, the consumption element of daily life is heavily stressed. The modern world is in essence a big factory. Products are manufactured by workers, who in turn, buy the fruits of their labor after work hours and take in the pleasures that are associated with the happiness-centered civilization. Lenina, for example, is a typical female citizen, a Beta, or higher class citizen (Firchow, 301-336). She buys and uses products such as perfumes, powders, contraceptives, and other accessories on a regular basis, without concern for ...