Comparing Brave New World And The Metamorphoses Of Ovid

Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World and George Orewell’s 1984 were both composed surrounding times of war in the twentieth century. The authors were alarmed by what they saw in society and began to write novels depicting the severe outcomes and possiblities of civilizaton if it continued down its path. Although the two books are very different, they both address many of the same issues and principles.

            Before launching into the implications of these two novels, I believe a summary of the general human experience in each of the two societies is necessary. Brave New World illustrates a society in which science has been elevated to a god-like position. In this novel, human

In “Why Ancient Greek mythology is Still Relevant Today” from owlcation.com Geri Mileff describes Ancient Greeks religion. The Greeks did back then, we also do today. Hercules by Disney was inspired by the Greek’s legends. However, this is not the only thing that we are inspired by. Just reading these myths or just studying them that people have more control over things. This is because the myths were designed to teach lessons for the Greeks. After every story, there seems to be a solution to the conflict.

In both stories, the gods are respected and feared in some way, but this was not always the case. To enforce His authority over all living creatures, the god in Genesis “saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth,” so He created a flood to rid the world of the evil that He created (King James Version, Gen. 6.5). However, not all humans were wicked; He spared Noah and his family because he remained so devoted to God, then later made a promise that “waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh” (Gen. 9.15). Likewise in The Epic of Gilgamesh, the

In the novel, Brave New World, written by Aldous Huxley, the author uses character development to contrast the two different societies present in the novel.He shows the importance of morality, or an increase in wisdom in the character of humankind. The author contrasts a society full of static and flat characters and another society full of round characters. In order to show the importance of life experiences in changing the character of individuals in the society.

It is remarkable how differentiated works of literature can be so similar and yet so different, just by the way the authors choose to use select certain literary devices. Two different novels, Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley, and The Road, by Cormac McCarthy, display these characteristics because of the ways the authors institute such mechanisms. Brave New World describes a futuristic era where humans are genetically manufactured for a certain job predestined to them before they are artificially created, and where common human emotions, desires, wants, and needs have all been modified to support a deemed utopian society where everyone lives and works together in harmony. The Road describes a post-apocalyptic

Brave New World is a book about a futuristic Earth where people are made by science and trained to do certain tasks, as babies. One of the motifs of the story is divergence. The main characters, Bernard, John, and Helmholtz all show some form of being different from the rest of the population. The books of Shakespeare that John owned, are another motif that is expressed. Shakespeare and the World State are extremely contradicting, while the World State wants to eliminate passion, and love, Shakespeare tries to propel it.

    Byblis and Myrrha, two of Ovid's impassioned, transgressive heroines, confess incestuous passions. Byblis yearns for her brother, Caunus, and Myrrha lusts for her father, Cinyras. Mandelbaum translates these tales effectively, but sometimes a different translation by Crane brings new meaning to an argument. As Byblis and Myrrha realize the feelings at hand, they weigh the pros and cons of such emotions. Despite the appalling relationships in question, each young girl provides concrete support and speaks in such a way that provokes pity for her plight. Their paths of reasoning coincide, but Byblis starts where Myrrha's ends, and visa versa; Myrrha begins where Byblis' concludes.

In “the Chrysalids”, people retain “internal” freedom (to think independently, question the norms of society and dream of a different reality if they are so inclined), but their behaviour is controlled by external forces (i.e. the power of the authorities). In contrast to this, in “Brave New World”, the people had been deprived of the “internal” freedom to question whether their society is the best possible.

“Gods can be evil sometimes.” In the play “Oedipus the King”, Sophocles defamed the gods’ reputation, and lowered their status by making them look harmful and evil. It is known that all gods should be perfect and infallible, and should represent justice and equity, but with Oedipus, the gods decided to destroy him and his family for no reason. It might be hard to believe that gods can have humanistic traits, but in fact they do. The gods, especially Apollo, are considered evil by the reader because they destroyed an innocent man’s life and his family. They destroyed Oedipus by controlling his fate, granting people the power of prophecy, telling Oedipus about his fate through the oracle of Apollo, and finally afflicting the people of

The seal of The Ohio State University features the Latin phrase Disciplina in Civitatem which means Education in Citizenship. This is what Ohio State wants to achieve when its students graduate and go into the real world. One aspect of achieving this is Ohio State using literature. One specific work that is used is Metamorphoses by Ovid. This essay will show that the two passages from the Metamorphoses that are the most helpful for citizen readers are when Pentheus won't listen to reason, and Latona comments on property rights.

In many cases when you read a novel you may find comparisons between the "fictional" society and your realistic one. The author may consciously or unconsciously create similarities between these two worlds. The novelist can foresee the future and write according to this vision. In Brave New World, Adlous Huxley envisions the future of our society and the dangerous direction it is headed in.

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka is a critically-acclaimed novella for the bizarre manner it is written in. Gregor Samsa, the protagonist, awakens from his slumber one morning only to discover he is no longer a human being. Strangely enough, he is now a grotesque insect. Although some may see this as an author not taking their literary work earnestly, Gregor’s transformation to an insect is symbolic in many ways to the society he is living in. In addition, his drastic change in appearance serves as a metaphor to key themes that are essential to an adolescent’s life. The Metamorphosis should be a required high school reading because it involves themes such as identity, family, and alienation that any high school student can relate to and acquire moral lessons.

Ovid’s Metamorphoses is an exceptionally written epic poem that is broken down into fifteen books. Throughout these books, tales of woe, danger, adventure, and love are told in a way that transports readers into the rich and exciting world that Ovid has created. In book three, the tale of “Narcissus and Echo” is told using beautiful diction and vivid imagery. The story is ultimately about a gorgeous man, named Narcissus, who toys with the affections of others, which leaves them completely despondent; and the sorrowful way that his fate takes revenge upon him. In the end, the tale of “Narcissus and Echo” demonstrates to its readers that love does not always lead to happiness, but instead has a disastrous effect upon one’s soul.

Ovid's "Metamorphoses" is sometimes argued as a non-epic as well as a true epic. It is mainly viewed as a non-epic because Ovid's subject matter is far from the heroic themes of the "Illiad", "Odyssey", and the "Aeneid" (Keith 237). Ovid was different and was motivated to push the epic beyond its previous boundaries (Ovid). Perhaps in hopes to confirm the structure of his work, Ovid declares that he will undertake "one continuous song in many thousands of verses" (Keith 238-239). Ovid's wording here is a self-conscious declaration that he is going to write in the epic mode.