Brave New World: 20

FINAL THOUGHTS

I'm not going to lie: this novel made it in the top five worst books I have ever read. I've read a lot of books. Nevertheless, I do see some value in reading this. For one, it was unlike any book I had ever read. So that was interesting. Another is, perhaps for the first time, I got to see an ideal society from someone else that was way different from mine. Perhaps this new, weird culture was Huxley's idea of a Utopia. It makes me wonder what was going on in his life that would inspire him to write this. Maybe he had lost all hope and this society sounded ideal to him. No choices, no decisions. A guaranteed happy life. Sounds pretty nice to me.

However, I did not like or expect the ending to be the way it was. John committed suicide? But he was supposed to be the hero and this wasn't supposed to be a tragedy. But if he was able to escape the terrible world he was in, then I guess I could see some sort of grim happiness in the ending. I severely hope that the next book has a little more of an upbeat and easily comprehensible ending.

Brave New World: 19

AHA! MOMENT

"What's the point of truth or beauty or knowledge when the anthrax bombs are popping all around you? That was when science first began to be controlled -after the Nine Years' War. People were ready to have even their appetites controlled then. Anything for a quiet life. We've gone on controlling ever since. It hasn't been very good for truth of course. But it’s been very good for happiness. One can't have something for nothing. Happiness has got to be paid for. You're paying for it, Mr. Watson- paying because you happened to be too much interested in beauty. I was too much interested in truth; I paid too." page 228

This part in the book seemed to be the most important section. It is where everything began making sense. We finally understand why this world was created. We know why they got rid of the things they did. And for the first time, I appreciated Huxley and this book (sort of). What if the world really does end up like that? What if there is a World War III and it destroys everything? Maybe we would want to start over. Maybe we would want for someone to take everything away from us if it meant there was no more fighting, no more pain, no more suffering. The idea is very intriguing. Take away cancer? Yes please. Get rid of suffering? Oh yea. But get rid of everything that makes humans, humans? I would like to say no way, but having never been in such a hopeless situation before, I would have no idea of what I would choose.

Brave New World: 18

SEX = NORM

I do not understand how this society is so sex-centered. They have turned something that is so taboo in our culture into a common thing. Not only is it just common, though; it is expected. In the beginning of the book we see the young boy crying and running away from another girl. Then, the Director sends him to go see the psychiatrist as if something were gravely wrong with him. Maybe Huxley has it right, though. You pick up almost any movie and it will probably be centered around sex or have some sort of not-so-hidden sexual meaning and appeal. What if thousands of years from now, religion and morals will change so much that those things are the new norm?

Brave New World: 17

WHO WILL BE ON TOP?

"It has given us the stablest equilibrium in history. China's was hopelessly insecure by comparison; even the primitive matriarchies were'nt steadier than we are." page 227

While I was reading through this rather dull part in the novel, not really taking much in, the name of China stuck out to me. I promptly reread the sentence, trying to grasp the meaning. I ended up having to read the whole paragraph again and finally came to a realization. China was behind them! That means, for the first time in a long time, China has not been at the top. This got me to thinking: how long exactly WILL China be at the top? The United States used to be the leader in just about everything, but now our generations are beginning to see the shift in power. What if in the future -possibly near future- some random country will be at the top of the totem pole? And what if that country decides to take over just like the Soviet Union did? This is an intriguing yet intimidating thought.

Brave New World: 16

THE RIGHT TO PARTY?

"Not to mention the right to grow old and ugly and impotent; the right to have syphilis and cancer; the right to have too little to eat, the right to be lousy; the right to live in constant apprehension of what may happen tomorrow; the right to catch typhoid; the right to be tortured by unspeakable pains of every kind." page 240

This may sound a little odd, but the whole time I read this section I couldn't help of thinking about that Beastie Boys' song "Fight for Your Right (To Party)". I honestly have no idea how this relates to the book at all. But I really hope that this song is stuck in your head now and you subsequently have to go on YouTube and watch the music video. Don't worry, I'll make your search shorter. Here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBShN8qT4lk .

And now I will ramble about how the song and this quote are related...

John has spent his whole life on the outside. He never quite blended in neither society. So when he is told of all these "rights", he understands the true value of each of them. By accepting this, he is able to live a normal life, not one rid of anything bad. He is given the opportunity to rely merely on chance, to provide and care for himself, to party the way he desires. And if his idea of a party is inflicting harm upon himself and then committing suicide, then all I have to say to that is "its his party and he'll die if he wants to."

Brave New World: 15

TRUE HAPPINESS

"He picked up his pen again, and under the words 'Not to be published' drew a second line, thicker and blacker than the first; then sighed, 'What fun it would be,' he thought, 'if one didn't have to think about happiness!'" page 177

I don't know about the rest of the world, but when I'm laying all cozy in my bed at night, I think about all the fun, happy times I had. For me, it is the highlight of my day. Thinking about the great times had is fun and makes you feel good. It is not a chore or something to dread. Even in more sad or angering circumstances, pondering on happiness can really change your life. So I thought it odd why Mustapha Mond would say such words. Isn't this whole society based on happiness for the entire people? However, I believe what he was referring to was he did not like thinking of happiness because it wasn't true happiness in that culture. Happiness for them was taking soma and going to the feelies. Both of which are entirely superficial things. They experienced no love or compassion (any feelings, really). And those two, for me, lead to the greatest happiness.

Brave New World: 14

NOT YOUR TYPICAL RAY OF SUNSHINE

"When he had finished, he picked up the whip and began hitting himself again. Nine, ten ,eleven, twelve..." page 248

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8V_6M4lmgY

The whole time John was in the picture, I thought he was going to be this cool guy who comes in and figures out the whole mess, saving the city and the people in it from the destructive lives they were living. Unfortunately, I was very wrong. He ends up going crazy and flees to live on the outskirts of town. There, he basically tortures his body in order to rid himself of any impurities. My first thought was, "OK, that's a little bizarre." But as I continued reading, I couldn't help thinking, "where have I seen this before." Then the answer hit me: from those strange, bloody scenes in "The Da Vinci Code". John is just like the character of Silas! Even though I genuinely liked John and I really did not like Silas, I couldn't help but notice the similarities once he started hitting himself with that whip. I attached a short video from one of Silas' self-torture scenes from "The Da Vinci Code". Even though it does not show the whipping, I think the general message gets accross that the two characters are just alike -in that way, that is.

Brave New World: 13

APHORISM

"When the individual feels, the community reels." Lenina Pg 94

This is only one of the many examples of clever sayings throughout this book. The creators and directors of this society have been heavily forcing this down the individuals throats for a very scientifically set interval of time in order for this to really sink in. It sinks in so far, in fact, that it becomes a part of the person. They truly believe that these phrases are the actual indisputable facts. This literary device is very helpful to the reader because we all have grown up hearing phrases similar to theirs. "An apple a day keeps the doctor away" and "don't put all your eggs in one basket" are two examples of phrases I have been hearing my whole existence. These phrases, among countless others, are created to help us succeed in leading a healthy, cautious life. I would never believe someone who told me that not making healthy decisions could actually save me a trip to the doctor. By using aphorisms, Huxley is demonstrating how difficult it is for characters such as Lenina to understand anything other than what they honestly believe as the absolute truth.

Brave New World: 12

METAPHOR

" 'This hive of industry,' as the Director was fond of calling it, was in the full buzz of work." page 147

This literary technique I almost always find the most effective. It clearly shows exactly what the writer was trying to convey. By explaining the industry as a hive, I immediately had something to compare it with. Having experienced beehives in my life, I was able to grasp the meaning behind this metaphor. When I think of bees, I think of hard workers who never cease to do their duties. That is how I also think of this society. Just like bees, the workers here are born with a job. They know nothing else other than their job and efficiently accomplish their tasks with blissful ignorance. Also, I was able to hear the industry. When he compared it to the buzz of the hive, I instantly thought that everyone of those workers must be hard at work.

Brave New World: 11

INDIRECT CHARACTERIZATION

I just found something I like! Huxley uses indirect characterization very well throughout the novel. He explains certain aspects of each character without giving away too much information. Then, he shows what the other characters think of the individual. Finally, he reveals the personal thoughts of the characters. This allows the reader to make their own assumptions. Even though he guides our thoughts, it is nice to decide for ourselves whether or not we like a certain character or the actions they commit. I also like how Huxley makes each character truly honest. There really isn't much hidden meanings behind the individuals' actions. Long story short, I appreciate drawing my own conclusions on each character, even if it is not what the author originally intended.

Brave New World: 10

POINT OF VIEW

The narrator uses an all-knowing point of view throughout the novel. He knows everything about every character. There is not one main character, so it is very easy to hop from one lead to the other. I generally do not like this when I am reading stories. I feel as if I get more into them when they are in first person. I would have enjoyed this a lot more if he would have at least stuck with one main character throughout the entire book. However, this serves the purpose of the book best. Huxley wanted to the reader to see all sides of the story. He wanted to convey the different points of view in the twisted new society. But I feel as if because of this, it was a little hard to follow at times because I was sometimes unsure of who exactly the narrator was talking about. Overall, I do not like this book, so I will most likely disagree with the majority of the writer's choices.

Brave New World: 9

IRONY

" 'O brave new world,' he repeated. 'O brave new world that has such people in it. Let's start at once.' " page 139

At the point on the book, John has just been told that he will be able to go home with Bernard and Lenina. Perhaps he is excited because he will be able to go to the place where his mother always praised. Or maybe he is anticipating a great community where the people will accept him, unlike his current situation. However, this is ironic because the reader knows that this is not the place he is thinking of. We understand that while this society might not be savage, it sure is like a cult. He is going to have the same hardships he had at this new place as he did back where he was born. There is nothing brave about these new people. In fact, they are quite the opposite. They got rid of all suffering, pain, and hardships. There is absolutely nothing for them to be brave for!

Brave New World: 8

SYMBOL

"The magic was on his side, the magic explained and gave orders." page 133

In this part of the book, the author is referring to the great writings of Shakespeare (another allusion). He in particular is describing the effect these writings have on John the Savage. John is in the middle of the two worlds; truly accepted in neither. However, when John realizes that he can read, he feels as if he has power over everyone else. He believes that since he can use Shakespeare's words and apply them to his life, he can conquer anything. When Huxley is talking about the "magic", he is symbolizing the poetic words that our society, as well as past societies, have lived off of. And they are a sort of magic for John. They give him courage and strength that he would have received from no other outlet.

Brave New World: 7

ONE COMMUNITY?

"Well, I don't know. You get them out of bottles. And when the bottles are empty, you send up to the Chemical Store for more. It's the Chemical Store people who make them, I suppose. Or else they send to the factory for them. I don't know. I never did any chemistry. My job was always with the embryos." page 130

I think it is extremely odd and kind of unsettling that everyone in the society has one specific job. From the very beginning they are created in the lab, there is a predestined route that they are to take. I cannot imagine living a life where all my decisions are made for me. It would be absolutely terrible if my path was laid out before me and there was no way of me even knowing of anything different. But what stands out to me the most about this, is that the creators and directors are so set on making sure that everyone is for everyone and all are needed to make the community run smoothly and efficiently. However, no one even knows what everyone else does. They are just set on what they do and are somehow content. As someone who loves to learn new things, I can't imagine having nothing else to fill my brain with. To do the same thing everyday, never moving forward or gaining new knowledge, would be horrendous.

Brave New World: 6

God?

"Thank Ford! he was not the last." page 79

So far throughout the novel, I have been reading about this Ford character quite often. Other than knowing he was the creator of this society, I had no idea who he really was. However, as I continued reading further, I noticed that he kind of takes place of a higher power. Whereas today we have God, Muhammad, Buddha etc, in this culture they do not believe in religions. Well, actually, it seems as if they are prohibited of ever knowing that religions and religious leaders ever existed. It seems as if Huxley decided to replace the name "God" with "Ford" to make it fit in with the characters and the lifestyle in the story. I have noticed that some characters in the story will refer to authority figures with different names, all which include "Ford" in the spelling. There are many allusions to past religions in this story, but this one stood out to me the most. Perhaps it is because I am a teenage and often overuse the ever-annoying "OMG" and other pointless phrases.

Brave New World: 5

THE GIVER

Lois Lowry's 1993 soft science fiction novel, "The Giver", is very similar to this book in many ways. Both involve a remade, "better" society in which the government has complete control over its peoples. At a young age, the children in this place are given a job they must do for the rest of their life. One job in this society is "birthmother". There is a certain amount of mothers who have three children each year. This is somewhat similar to Huxley's idea of having one uterus create tons of children. Pain and suffering are eliminated just like the "soma" does in "Brave New World". In Lowry's novel, Jonas recieves the job of "Reciever or Memory" and is allowed -even though it is a great burden at first - to know what happened before this society was built. Jonas is very similar to the character of Bernard. Jonas is given all the knowledge, but I feel as if Bernard is going to have to discover it all on his own and is partially there already.

However, the two books could be contrasted. In "The Giver", there are families, whereas, in Huxley's, no one really even knows what a family is. But the main difference that stuck out to me was the fact that sexual activity is not only frowned upon, but is stamped out in "The Giver". In contrast, "Brave New World" is very heavily centered on sexual activity and promiscuity.

Because I can now see the similarties between these two books - "The Giver" being one of my favorites- I am more open minded about where this book could be going.

Brave New World: 4

STYLE

I think you want us to describe the effectiveness of certain literary elements within the book, but I am going to do just the opposite. Huxley's style - in my opinion - is completely ineffective. The way he jumps from topic to different topic and conversation to another simultaneous conversation is not only highly confusing, but deeply frustrating. I am having a hard enough time attempting to decipher all of his technical and scientific babble. But having speakers all over the place is extremely annoying. I think it just makes reading this story - which I already dislike - more difficult. The syntax is all jumbled. I've had to look up countless words in the dictionary. And the overall tone to me is just depressing. I really hope this book gets better.

Brave New World: 3

ALLUSION

"...and where was Odysseus, where was Job, where were Jupiter and Gotama and Jesus? Whisk- and those specks of antique dirt called Athens and Rome, Jerusalem and he Middle Kingdom- all were gone..." page 35

Huxley's use of allusions is perhaps one of the only things I have liked so far about this book. This really allowed me to see just how far this community has strayed away from our current culture. It is kind of unreal to think about how (very possibly) the future generations will have no idea who these people are or what events took place. In addition, my curiosity rises and I wonder if we aren't going to see more of these allusions as someone not yet introduced in the book will discover the meaning behind these historical references.
These allusions gave me a lot of insight into the writer as well. I figured he would focus more on Jesus. However, he only briefly mentioned Him. Huxley does talk about Christianity a few times which makes me wonder if he was a Christian himself.

Brave New World: 2

DEAD METAPHOR (CLICHE)

"The students took it down in their little books. Straight from the horse's mouth." page 28

I have been hearing the cliche "straight from the horses mouth" for as long as I can remember. However, I never really understood the full meaning behind it. So after a quick search on Google -where else is there, really?- I found a short definition: from the highest authority. Finally connecting the phrase with the meaning I was able to fully understand what the author was trying to tell with this overused metaphor. The director seems to have this odd presence about him. He throws out commands left and right and has this tone of authority. A tone that none of the students would dare reckon with. In contrast, I as the reader want to know more about this Director guy. Why is everyone doing everything that he says? Why does he come off as sort of menacing? What made him be where he is at currently in this book? According to my Google search, if he is the horse, then HE is the one in charge. I look forward to figuring this character out and discovering what makes him the horse.
(But because he is coming off as a strong, close-minded authority figure, I can already tell I don't like him.)

Brave New World: 1

ONOMATOPOEIA

"Whizz and then, click!" page 9

In the first chapter of the book, the author uses an onomatopoeia to convey his point. This is very effective not only to the reader's eyes, but also to the reader's ears. We do not just see it, however, we hear it as well. This allows the reader to really connect with the author and understand just what he was trying to convey in that sentence. While reading this phrase, I was directly transferred into the "Organ Store". I could see the little bottles zooming by and could hear the sounds that they made. By use of onomatopoeia, I was given tangible evidence to exactly what was happening in that chamber. Four lines down, the author uses the same words to reiterate the constant, perpetual motion of the system. It also can show how uniform the society is if every movement makes the same sound repeatedly as if it were just an average factory.