A Brave New World Quote Analysis

“Life is like a game of cards. The hand you are dealt is determinism; the way you play it is free will.” This quote by Jawaharlal Nehru shows that even with limits, there is still free will. Free will is defined as “freedom of humans to make choices that are not determined by prior causes or by divine intervention” (Merriam-Webster) In both Brave New World and Gattaca there are limits. In some ways, both governments do give their people the freedom to make their own decisions. In what these two books share in common, they also differentiate a lot. The movie Gattaca presents more of a free will environment than Brave New World.

The concept of social class has been around for ages and is still a part of today’s society. Social class is not only based on the individual’s wealth but also on their social standing such as; monarchs, priests, nobles, merchants, and peasant class. The peasant class was practically ignored, which means that the higher classes would only pay attention to each other. This can be the case in society today, there are some people who feel that their career makes them higher than a janitor. Even though humans have been around for centuries, social class is still a big issue.

In Class Matters, Bill Keller examines the meaning of the word class and how it plays on the life of the US citizens.According to Class Matters, a class is represented as four cards, one from each suit: education, income, occupation, and wealth. Based on your cards you are put into a class. Most people end up with the same cards as their parents. Keller explains how a class can be predetermined by a person’s upbringing or how they were raised. In this book, Bill Keller suggests that it is quite difficult to move into other social classes than the one we were born in, or a class we have been associated with for a long time. Based on the reading of this book along with other resources, moving into other social classes is exceptionally

In the first article titled “Class in America” by Gregory Mantsios the discussion on class affecting the United States negatively is brought up. Gregory talks about the fact that people do not choose to be poor but they are put into situations where they cannot move up in class. Due to the fact that class creates an immense gap in communities, there are many issues linked to being categorized as the lower class. In the article Gregory states that “class affects more than lifestyle and material well being. It has a significant impact on our physical and mental well-being as well.” CITE) The author connects the idea that if you are in the lower class than you will also deal with other issues include your mental and physical health declining. Alongside this idea, the author also states “All Americans do not have an equal opportunity to succeed, and class mobility in the United States is lower than that of the rest of the industrialized world. (CITE) This goes along with the idea that once your born into a class, breaking out of it is virtually impossible. The author is also making the point that in the United States class is more problematic than other developed nations and because of this not everyone is given the chance to break free from a poor lifestyle.

Each of these groups is stratified into its own class; the group of people ranked most closely to them in property, power, and prestige. A person’s position in the stratification system affects everything about their life, from what they think and expect in life to how they see the world, as well as what opportunities they will have access to. Although, your status is still assigned at birth, but you have the chance at upward social mobility based on material possessions that you acquire, or things that you achieve. Or you may be on the other end of the spectrum and experience downward social

In Brave New World, Aldous Huxley introduces the dystopia of a society created on the principle of social stability at all costs. Huxley wrote this book in 1932 hoping to warn future generations of what he feared might happen if society did not do something to stop the inevitable. The leaders of our society today hope for and work towards social stability without taking away primitive rights. Social stability can only be achieved by a society whose beliefs in social and ethical issues are never challenged. So even though modern society hopes for social stability, it is not a practical aspiration because it is obvious that some of the social and ethical

In the literature Brave New World by Aldous Leonard Huxley says the quote “I’d rather be myself,” he said “Myself and nasty. Not someone else however jolly.” The character speaking is John, he is often seen as “the Savage” in the Brave New World. John reflects on his disillusionment with the superficial and artificially happy society of the World State. The character said this during a conversation with Mustapha Mond, one of the World Controllers.

In “Brave New World” the quote “You can’t consume much if you sit still and read books” is a reflection of their social ideology, where constant consumption is promoted to maintain economic stability and social control. This line is said by Mustapha Mond, one of the World Controllers, who explains the principles that their society is controlled under. Mustapha’s statement explains that activities like reading are seen as a form of resistance to the consumer culture of their society. Reading is associated with individual thought and the potential for critical reflection, which poses a threat to their controlled society. The author uses Mustapha’s character to critique a future world where the pursuit of happiness is combined with the pursuit of pleasure.

Many organizations structure themselves in a traditional and recognizable way using a hierarchy. The dictionary definition of hierarchy is a series of ordered groupings of people or things within a system. Hierarchy describes reporting levels and the status of people in the structure. This structure has lots of employees involved; it is used in large retail shops for example Tesco.

Social stratification also ties in with social location because depending on one’s social location one is thrown into, their class system is assigned, “…any society will consist of levels that relate to each other in terms of superordination and subordination, be it in power, privilege or prestige” (78). This is a system of ranking, and one’s position is usually determined though economic criteria. One’s level may change however; “…a class society is one in which there is typically a high degree of social mobility” (79). A persons class position will determine their life experiences based on their opportunities available, Max Weber explain that “ones class position yields certain probabilities or life chances…” (79). Role theory explains how one’s actions and identity is socially bestowed and sustained. A role is defined as “a typified response to a typified

When one reflects on the period during which Huxley’s novel was written and the modern world of his time, the comparison to the socialist world cannot be ignored. The whole idea of a utopia is very similar to socialism. The World State society is under the complete control of the government. Pre-destination department chooses what people will learn, what they will do and how they will look. Each caste wears a different color clothes and does different type of labor. None of these decisions are made by people themselves. In our society, even with the socialism, where government decides what products to produce, in what quantities, and how people will live, people still have a choice and opportunity to be different. Stability and individuality in utopia are reached by taking away the individuality from people. In the World State government controls desires and consumption by creating and destroying the demand for certain objects through the psychological training of infants.

In this world where people can acquire anything they need or want, we have to wonder, “Is the government controlling us?” Both the governments in A Brave New World and in the United States of America offer birth control pills and have abortion clinics that are available for everyone, thus making birth control pills and abortion operations very easy to acquire. Although both governments offer birth control pills and abortion clinics, A Brave New World’s government requires everyone to take the pills and immediately get an abortion when pregnant. This in turn shows us that A Brave New World’s government is controlling the population and the development of children. China is one of the few countries that currently have control of the

People can be born into a social economic class. The idea of class mobility can relate to American values. When you are born in a class, does not

According to Abercrombie (2000) the upper class is distinguished from the rest by its wealth and power.  The upper class consists of very few people; McGregor argues that it may be as little 1% of society's population.  The people in this group are employers, they own large quantities of land, and some are self-employed or have a career as managers or professionals.  Wealth is distributed among the upper class members mainly through inheritance.  With greater wealth people have the opportunity to manipulate the life that they will lead.  The education system reinforces many inequalities insuring that members of the highest class have better opportunities and elevated chances of achieving greatness.  Members

Social class describes the different "layers" that exist in society. These "layers," or classes in society, are a division that civilization has been running on ever since the beginning of mankind. In most modern societies, our system of social class division is one of opportunity. We experience a good deal of social mobility, where people through generations or in their own lifetime can move up or down the social scale. By examining the many different perceptions of social class along with S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders, it is illustrated that social class has an impact on people while they are growing up, and will usually deny them from rising above adversity.