At first I wasn't going to do this, since I have the feeling I'll have to do it again for a grade. But we discussed this today and it got me thinking. It reminded me of the first time I ever read this book.
I'll give it to you straight: I loved Brave New World. I don't know why, but i have this thing for novels that focus on utopian societies. I remember reading The Giver in fifth grade, and how I was just so into it...that really kickstarted my fascination with what our society could potentially be if we let it.
But anyway. Back to Brave New World.
In futuristic England, the best way to describe the world and its people is...lifeless. Nobody is an individual, everyone is created in a genetic lab, made a certain way to live a certain way of life. Everyone's in one caste or the other, they ignore all other castes but their own, and they believe their caste is perfectly fine...because they've had it whispered in their ear while they slept as young children, all through the night for years until it's been engraved in their minds.
These night-whispers rule their life, and give them no freedom of thought. If anyone dares to think beyond what's in front of them (...if anyone who dares to think at all, really), they are frowned upon.
One of their virtues is "Everyone belongs to everyone else." Therefore, everyone thinks the same and offers themselves up to everyone else because that's what is supposed to be.
They go throughout their lives doing whatever duties they have, and continuously engage in sexual activity with numerous people. It's considered odd to stick with only one person.
Women are perfumed, polished, nipped and tucked into these doll-like specimens of supposedly-perfect beauty.
There are no parents ("Father" and "Mother" are considered bad words). There are no diverse languages. People that do not fit into this society are sentenced to live in a reservation, where they live - literally - like savages.
Everyone was happy. Everyone was happy because they were blind...unliving. They did not experience pain (they literally had a happy pill called soma), sadness, discomfort, filth, or any emotion other than happiness. As long as everyone was happy, everything was stable.
And this world lived for stability.
When I was reading this book, I was always rereading certain lines or paragraphs.
There's a part when Bernard takes Lenina (and sexually has her for a week) out to Arizona to see a savage reservation, and while they're settling in, he suggests they go for a walk outside around their hotel, so they could be alone. Lenina points out that they WILL be alone, later. Bernard clarifies that he's not talking about being alone for sex, but being alone so they could talk.
"Talk? But about what?" Lenina asks. As the book says further, "walking and talking seemed an odd way to spend an afternoon."
People have sex without getting to truly know the person, just to be satisfied and in a happily-sexual stupor, instead of going on a walk and having an in-depth conversation face-to-face that really grabs at the cold truths of life...or maybe even a conversation that's lively and full of jokes.
When I read that, all I could think was "...is that true or is that true?"
So sad.
We have drugs so people can be dumbly happy.
We have digital books.
We are losing the arts community because people are not patient enough to take in the emotion that goes into art.
Girls are sucking up, poofing up, and revealing more and more.
People would rather be on Facebook than go out with friends and talk in person.
It's scary, you know?
Really scary.
Go read Brave New World. Or Fahrenheit 451. Or The Giver.
And wake up from your stupor.
No comments:
Post a Comment