Brave New World as Compared to Modern Society
Uploaded by Quest4Glory on Jul 05, 2004
In many cases when you read a novel you may find comparisons between the "fictional" society and your realistic one. The author may concsciously or unconsciously create similarities between these two worlds. The novelist can forsee the future and write according to this vision. In Brave New World, Adlous Huxley evnsions the future of our society and the dangeroud direction it is headed in.
Brave New World is greatly dependant upon soma, as in our world where prescribed drugs and drug abuse are prominent. This is evident when Bernard and Lenina return from the Savage Reservation. Lenina is devestated from her experiences, so decides to take soma. it Illustates how like our world when something upsets us instead of trying to solve the probelm we use drugs to mask them.
Linda's addiction to soma is also an illustration of the similarities of drug abuse between our two worlds. Linda's retuen to brave new world after many years brings her to the abuse of soma. She uses it as an escape from reality. Some of us use drugs to escape from the harshness and the tough brutality of reality. We always dream of the perfect utopia and expect our world to transform into it. Some of us always look for the easy way out and drugs allow us that.
A further similarity of Brave New World to us, si when John is in the hospital after hos mother's death due to soma abuse, and witnesses the workers receiving their soma rations. John begins to throw the soma out if the window, causing hysteria among the workers. For these workers soma is everything. They cannot imagine life without it. People addicted to cocaine, heroine and other drugs go through a similar stage called withdrawl. Living without the drugs seem unimaginable and frightening. If our world does not stop this dangerous overuse of drugs we will see ourselves evolve into the frightening direction of Brave New World and will be unable to stop it.
Physical and mental controlling (hypnopedia) is used to teach moral lessons in Brave New World, our world uses hypnotism for the same purposes. The incident with Ruben Rabinovich illustates how our world is similar to brave new world. Ruben Rabinovivch was a young boy who fell asleep witht he radio on listening to a professor give a lecture. When he awoke the next morning he could recite the facts he heard but,...