Aldous Huxley was born in England, but spent the majority of his writing career in Los Angeles. Huxley's mother died when he was 14 and he was afflicted with keratitis punctata leaving him clinically blind for 2 to 3 years. His clinical blindness made him uneligible to be drafted into the army during the first world war, leaving him to watch from the sidelines and perhaps develop some of his pacifistic views. His brother Noel committed suicide due to clinical depression, which is similar to John Savage who drove himself to the noose due to extreme shame of his participation in a soma induced orgy.
The World State in Brave New World is a parody of Gasington Manor, the home of a wealthy English family who invited other weathly influentials such as D. H. Lawerence and many conscientious objectors. The majority of the people that lived there were counter-cultural in their morals, and Huxley did not like this.
Huxley came from a family full of biologists and other doctors so it is no surprise that he eventually wound up studying medicine. His knowledge of medicine can be seen in Brave New World when he describes processes such as artificial inseminiation and the way that soma, the drug rationed by the government, affects the mind. It is possible that Huxley's knowledge of such things gave him insight into a future "impersonal world" such as the World State. Huxley believed strongly against these dehumanizing effects of science.
Besides his many works of fiction, Huxley wrote many non-fiction works on pacifist issues such as Ends and Means, An Encyclopedia of Pacifism, and Pacifism and Philosophy, and was also an active member of the Peace Pledge Union. Although the World State served as a satirical version of an advancing human society, it also embraced many of Huxley's ideas of pacifism. At the same time, John savage exhibits very violent tendencies, such as whipping himself as pennance for his sexual desires for Lenina as well as his violent outbursts at the society of the World State.
Plot Summary:
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Brave New World begins with the Director of the Hatchery and Henry Foster giving a tour of the Central London Hatching and Conditioning Centre to a group of boys. They show them how embryos are developed or stunted in order to fit into a certain caste: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, or Epsilon. Once born, they use a method called hypnopaedic teaching, or sleep-teaching, in order to instill the morals of the World State into the developing children. Meanwhile, Lenina, a beta girl, discusses her seemingly monogamous relationship with Henry Foster to her colleague Fanny. Fanny suggests that Lenina date more guys because it is immoral to be monogamous. Lenina mentions her attraction to Bernard Marx, an alpha whose physical structure is not up to par with the other alphas. Bernard invites her to the Savage Reservation in New Mexico. Lenina is disgusted by the way the savages live and takes enough soma, a drug distributed by the World State, to remain knocked out for most of the trip. Bernard meets John, a fair-skinned boy who lives with the savages. His mother, Linda, has been shunned by the rest of the savages due to her promiscuity. Prior to leaving for the reservation, the Director of the Hatchery tells Bernard that he went to the savage reservation 20 years ago with a woman and she was lost after a thunderstorm. Bernard notes that Linda is probably that girl and that John is the Director’s son.
John expresses interest in going to the “brave new world” about which he has heard so much from his mother so Bernard brings him and Linda back to London. The Director resigns upon hearing that his former lover and illegitimate son have come to London due to his shame at being a father, which is sacrilegious in the World State. John is at first enamored by all the advanced technology and grandeur of the World State, but the more he learns about the backwards moral code that it stands for, the more he becomes disgusted by it. John is also very attracted to Lenina and her to him, but he desires more than just lust. He sees her as pure and innocent, but when she tries to seduce him, his illusion of her is shattered and John becomes very violent. While Lenina hides in the bathroom, John receives a call from the hospital informing him that his mother is dying. He visits the hospital where Linda has been on a permanent soma vacation. She is unable to respond to him as the soma has essentially made her into a vegetable. John cries as she takes her last breaths.
As John is leaving the hospital, he comes across a group of Deltas who are receiving their soma ration. John throws the soma out the window and urges the Deltas to revolt. A riot ensues and Bernard and Helmholtz, an alpha who is far too intelligent to be satisfied in the World State and who is John and Bernard’s friend, come to help John. Police come and quell the riot with soma gas and John, Bernard, and Helmholtz are arrested. The three meet Mustapha Mond, one of the World Controllers, in his office where John argues with him over the World State’s policies. Mustapha argues that peace, happiness, and social stability are worth the sacrifice of art, science, and religion while John argues that a life without them is not worth living. Helmholtz and Bernard are exiled while John is moved to the country side where he whips himself daily as penance for his desires for Lenina. Curious citizens of the World State eventually discover him and a hit movie is made starring John. Flocks of people come to see John and to see him whip himself. Lenina runs with open arms towards John but John shouts “Kill it! Kill it!” In the intensity of the scene, the whole crowd, including John, takes part in soma-induced orgy. The next day, John hangs himself out of extreme shame.
Character Analysis: John Savage
John Savage is the ultimate outsider as he is rejected both by the uncivilized indians with whom he grew up and by the civilized World State. John's beliefs are manily influenced by his extensive knowledge of Shakespearean works, but also in part by his "savage" upbringing, despite being rejected. John holds very fixed beliefs and although he is at first amazed with the futuristic civilization, as he learns more about it, he becomes more and more disgusted by what he sees in the World State. Of particular significance is his relationship with Lenina, who he sees as both an angel and a harlot at different points in the story. He at first mistakenly believes that she is pure and wishes to marry her. When she attempts to seduce him, John staves off her attempts and forever labels her as a promiscuous devilspawn. Their relationship shows the contrasting moral codes of the World State, which promotes sexual promiscuity and no commitment relationships, and John, who believes in marriage before sex and committed relationships.
Analysis of Elements that Relate to Topic:
Brave New World presents a lot of conrast in characters, settings, and moral codes. Even John's suicide is a direct result of the contrast between his own beliefs and those of the World State. The religion in Brave New World is a mirror image of religion in reality. Fordism is a state-imposed and is in essence the worship of technology. It advocates a sort of 'free-love' society that favors multiple sexual partners and drug-induced highs; basically the opposite of most Western religions nowadays. However, both Fordism and religion today congregate people together for a common activity, worship. Yet, the Fordists worship by having orgies while most other religions might sing hymns, pray, or meditate.
