Children in lab
"'Put them down on the floor.' The infants were unloaded" (Huxley 20). 7. This detail seems important because Huxley wrote it to sound like the children were objects. He wrote the children were 'unloaded' not set down. He writes it to sound like the children aren't even people. This is important because it relates to the fact that they are created. These kids weren't born, they were made in a lab. Huxley writes it like this to show the reader that, in this society, there is no individuality. No person is looked at as an individual. They are looked at as a part of the overall group that is society. They are made to be pieces of the machine of society; to do their job and be happy. Huxley writes this first scene of conditioning in the story like this to display this point, which is a main theme in his novel.
Playtime at the lab
"two children, a little boy of about seven and a little girl who might have been a year older, were playing, very gravely and with all the focused attention of scientists intent on a labour of discovery, a rudimentary sexual game" (Huxley 31). 8. This is an interesting thought because it goes against everything we believe today. Children are encouraged not to try anything sexual in real life. A child at the age of seven doing anything sexual is seen as taboo. Yet in this novel it is unbelievable that children used to not be allowed erotic play. They condition they're children to experiment with everything pleasurable, especially sex. This is so because they want everyone in the society to be happy. They don't want them to lust after things that they desire so they have them get their experimentation out early. Huxley writes it like this because he is pointing out how the controlling body of this society tries to control every aspect of life. He is expressing that no one has any kind of free will at all. He wrote this book as a possible future to make the people of his time, fear the possibility of this future.
Bernard Marx's personality
'"But his reputation?' 'What do i care about his reputation?' 'They say he doesn't like Obstacle Golf.' 'They say, they say,' mocked Lenina. 'And then he spends most of his time by himself- ALONE.'" (Huxley 45). 6. This view of Marx from the other characters is dramatic irony. We, the readers, know that Marx behaves as a person today would. But in their society he is an outcast. They only see him as being weird. He doesn't fit in to the norm of his society. Because of this, to the people in the novel, he is out of place. It is dramatic irony because we know that he is acting how we do, and we see that their society is ridiculous by our standards. Huxley does this to have a contrast to the happiness that most people have in the society of Civilized England. Everyone in this society is conditioned to be happy and nothing else. Huxley uses Marx to contrast this, and show the consequences that come with going against this society.
The Deity Henry Ford
"His fordship Mustapha Mond" (Huxley 34). 9. Something i appreciate about Huxley making Ford a deity is that it ties perfectly into his main theme of his novel. Henry Ford perfected mass production in the early 20th century. He started this mass production idea with an assembly line for his model T. This is a perfect god-figure for Huxley's novel because in his created society, they are mass producing people. They literally set up an assembly line for humans in the lab that is explained at the beginning of the novel. They change traits in these humans that they create to mass produce them for the tasks they need done. They have the bokanovsky process which splits one egg into around 67 copies to fully extend how many people they create. There is no individualism in Huxley's society. There is only the mass group that does it's work, and doesn't complain. This is why Ford is such a perfect god figure in this novel; he started mass production for cars, and Huxley's society started it for humans.
The Citizens blindness
"At twenty past nine they walked across the street to the newly opened Westminster Abbey Cabaret. It was a night almost without clouds,moonless and starry; but of this on the whole depressing fact Lenina and Henry were fortunately unaware. The electric sky-signs effectively shit off the outer darkness" (Huxley 75). 4. The tone of this part is cynical. Huxley is cynical towards the two characters obliviousness to the starry sky. This cynicism drives one of his main themes of the book. He wrote this novel as a prediction to what could happen in the future. He shows that if we are not careful we could have this happen in real life. Throughout the novel he displays the civilians of "Civilized England" as being ignorant to nature and beauty because they were conditioned to be. He does this to show people that if we aren't careful we can become so engrossed in our materialistic objects we will miss out on the beauty of the world. He uses the 'savage' to push this idea. He is written to be the pure character in the novel. He opposes the materialistic objects and respects the beauty in the world. He is used as a contrast to the citizens of civilized society.
The ignorance of the Masses
"I mean, when a child asks you how a helicopter works or who made the world- well, what are you to answer if you're a Beta and have always worked in the Fertilizing Room? What ARE you to answer (Huxley 122). 10. This reminds me of how slaves were treated during slavery. In the south, on the large plantations, in the 18th and 19th centuries there were hundreds and hundreds of African American slaves. The plantation owners owned every single one of them. They controlled what these slaves did and what they knew. They made sure that their slaves could not read or write, or learn any sort of 'useless' information. They did this so the slaves would not become uncertain of their positions and revolt. This is exactly how the 'civilized society' works in the Brave New World. The mass group of people only know what they need to. They aren't taught a variety of knowledge, or anything deemed not useful to their job. This is so they don't question their place in society, and so they just do what they know.
Change in scenery for Lenina and Bernard
"Twice, thrice, four times round he went. the blood was streaming. Five times, six times around" (Huxley 115). The imagery in this section reveals just how sheltered the people in the civilized society are. This ritual that they witness is routine for the 'savages'. They have no problem seeing the young boy in this scene being whipped over and over again. They see it as a good thing; a way to make their corn grow. However, this scene is wildly eye opening for Bernard, and especially Lenina. They are never exposed to anything like this in their normal lives. The are used to fun games and only happiness. Right when Lenina sees this ritual sacrifice, her mind can't comprehend the purpose of it. She instantly says she wants her soma. She would rather go on a 'vacation' with soma than try to comprehend the brutality of this scene.
Johns Infatuation with Lenina
"He gave a gasp and was silent, gaping. He had seen, for the first time in his life, the face of a girl whose cheeks were not the colour of chocolate or dogskin, whose hair was auburn and permanently waved, and whose expression (amazing novelty!) was one of benevolent interest" (Huxley 117). 5. John feels like he is in love the moment he sees Lenina. He feels this way because this is the first time he has ever seen a 'civilized woman' and he finds her to be beautiful. In his mind she is the most beautiful girl he has ever seen. He also is infatuated with her because she is the first person to actually seem interested in him. He is an outsider in his community, so he is used to being shunned. She is the first girl to actually look at him with "benevolent interest". He feels like she really cares about him, and doesn't judge him for being different because he is like her. Huxley has John feel this way for Lenina at the beginning to show how pure and ignorant John really is. He uses John as a complete contrast to the normal 'civilized civilian'. He also does it to set up the downfall between these two characters later in the story.
John's Unavoidable Explosion
"The menial staff of the Park Lane Hospital for the Dying consisted of one hundred and sixty-two Deltas... From the lift the Savage stepped out into the midst of them... he began to shoulder his way through the crowd" (Huxley 208). 2. This setting in front of the Park Lane Hospital gives the perfect location for John's speech to overthrow society. This setting of this scene is a packed square where the Delta workers are about to get their daily rations of soma. This gives John a large crowd to speak to, and also something to get their attention with. He sees the opportunity, so he runs up to the soma distribution table and acts out his plan. He starts to throw out the soma rations that the Deltas were going to receive. He then gives these Deltas a speech about no longer being slaves to the government and to the soma. He hopes to show them that they are not living their lives, he wants them to see that they are being controlled. Instead Huxley uses this scene to show just how ignorant and conditioned the civilians of the society are. The Deltas hardly can even understand John's speech, and even if they could they don't care. All they want is to get their soma,and go on with their day. All they see John as, is a barrier between their 'vacations' and them.
John's Revelation of Lenina's True Nature.
"Zip! Zip! Her answer was wordless. She stepped out of her bell-bottomed trousers... And as though awakened by her cry he caught her by the shoulders and shook her. 'Whore!' he shouted. 'Whore! Impudent strumpet!'" (Huxley 194). 3. Huxley seems to feel that the open nature of the 'civilized' society's sex life is ridiculous. The reader can see this clearly in this scene. Huxley has his pure character, John, tell Lenina that he loves her. He tells her he will do anything to get her love and company. Huxley then has Lenina state ' you should have told me you liked me', and then had her strip for John. She sees that he likes her, and instantly jumps to the conclusion that they must have sex. In Johns mind, and arguably Huxley's, a man must work to win over a girl's heart. John wants to do something for Lenina to show her how he feels about her, but she just wants to have sex. This is because that is the norm for her and for their society. Huxley uses this scene to show that this norm is ridiculous, and how it should never work like this in real life. He shows this by having John explode on Lenina, for being such an "impudent strumpet".