Conformity In Brave New World

George Orwell’s political parable, 1984, portrays an oppressive and dictatorial government, which thereby presents to the reader a palpable sense of danger and malevolence born out of the creation of a counter utopic totalitarian regime. Orwell’s nihilistic creation of Oceania, presents a world wherein every aspect of private and public life is abhorrently regimented and regulated by the autocratic ‘Big Brother’. The whole population at large is forced to conform to the ideals and beliefs of the tyrannical ‘party’ as a means of not only survival but also a means of being able to live an unabated existence. The party opposes all forms of individuality and

During the 1930s, the times of World War II and the Great Depression, Aldous Huxley wrote Brave New World. There were several issues going on in Huxley’s time that are still present in today's world . Huxley features some of these problems in his book, Brave New World. These problems include drug or medicine usage, women and gender inequality, and traditional marriage/homosexuality. Since this book was written during the times of the Great Depression and World War II, these factors also contributed to some of these issues. Since World War II and the Great Depression are over, these do not affect the problems today. Although some of these problems are still a problem in today's world and society, they are not as much of a problem as they were during Huxley's time.

Bernard, Lenina, and Linda all have unique characteristics that set them apart from the regular citizens of the World State Society. However, all three of them have unknowingly fallen into the conformities of the state’s maladaptive rules, preferably choosing to emanate the state’s values that do not fit their own characteristics. The World State’s guidelines and regulations pull all the citizens of the World State, including Bernard, Lenina, and Linda, into one lifestyle of living through a domino effect of conformity: the more people that conform, the more harder it is to resist the urge to conform with them. Aldous Huxley’s Brave New

Many individuals is faced with the decision of conforming or choosing personal desire, and it is not an easy decision. It is hard because being shunned by others for being different is not a good feeling. Choosing to conform over personal desire, often leads to loss. On the other hand, personal desire is what sets others apart and gives them joy. In the poem, “The Jackhammer Syndrome”, Al Purdy discusses the good and bad memories he has experienced. He goes through his memories of when he had fun and made mistakes, but he reflects on what he could have done better. The author of “The Jackhammer Syndrome informs against choosing the welcoming joy of conformity over the long-term gains of personal desire. Making the decision to pursue conformity over personal desire may seem easy at first, but if the choice is to conform, the joy it gives will not last. Making the decision to pursue conformity over personal desire Conformity may seem to give joy at first, but it does not last. When Al is playing pool with his brother, he wants to win badly, but losses. However when he did not care to win, Al wins! Conforming can lead to loss but personal desire has much to gain. If the choice is to conform, personal identity may be lost. In my life, I recognize several instances in which I found several similarities between Al and myself. I have made decisions that were not always good ones such as swimming across long distances with friends.

In the novel Brave New World, written by Aldous Huxley, the use of “soma”, a drug similar to an opiate, is used to help control peace and the world. Since soma has been used to configurate the world, there has been no war, mental disabilities, depression or sickness throughout the people. The people are given soma every day to function throughout society without having to deal with stress, anxiety, depression or any other negative feelings, the soma blocks out “feelings” in order to properly thrive without any implications. Soma is not just only used to hide feelings and keep the people feeling youthful, but also to keep the community become more societal and unified. Soma is depended on through the society to deal with any problems, whether

Soma is the answer to all of life's problems and is invented in an attempt to distract society from worry, tension, and pain. The drug is rationed by the government and is normally consumed after a hard day's work. In this utopian society, people choose to "know no pain" (Clareson 238). Instead of suffering, people fill their days with the mindless acts they were predestined to perform. At the end of each day, everyone gathers in crowded distribution rooms and waits eagerly to receive the one thing that truly makes the day worthwhile, which is his or her ration of soma (Huxley 215). This valuable drug goes beyond the literal meaning in which it is being used and becomes the one thing that everyone really lives for. The idea in the novel is that pleasure is the most powerful motivator (Clareson 238). So by giving the masses pleasure, the directors keep the world running smoothly. The directors also eliminate the time between desire and fulfillment, so one cannot help but take the quick fix of soma rather than using logic to figure out his or her problems. It is the mass' motivator and problem solver, and brings the people all the great moods and feelings that they could possible ask for because of its hypnotic power to relax the mind (Meerloo 236). Unfortunately, when the futuristic people take this drug, they eventually

In Brave New World, soma is used to oppress the competence to be aware of one’s personal feelings and the ability to communicate their emotions. The people in Brave New World have been so conditioned to seek drugs to forget their human feelings, they have become incapable of self-expression. Soma is a powerful drug encouraged by the government to consume whenever one gets any emotional urges. It is distributed rationally throughout the population and acts as an anti-depressant. Soma is provided by the government to distract people from any cruel realities or any human emotion that may want to question or change the government in power. It numbs people of their feelings and abolishes any emotional responses while creating a sense of euphoria and well-being. With the backing of science, the state provides them with soma to dissuade their attention from the harsh truth, while keeping them in a happy bliss. Throughout the years, scientists and doctors have seen a growing trend in the integration of pharmaceutical drugs in our healthcare, rather than encouraging life style changes. For instance, pain-reliving drugs are the most commonly prescribed medication in America. Pain-reviving medication produces a false euphoric sense of well-being and pleasure.

Brave New World In Brave New World, Aldous Huxley illustrates alienation through the character John “the Savage” to develop the theme of isolation. Being an outcast in society John understands the feeling of isolation more than anyone throughout the novel. Although the World State viewed isolation as “political inefficiency” (page 237) John saw it as an opportunity. John begins to understand the importance of art, religion, self-discovery, and literature the more he is in the World State.

A Dystopia is drawn on emotional events, anchoring its visions of a nightmare future in contemporary fears of totalitarian ideology and uncontrolled advances in technology and science” (Baker 22). Even in the world of all its perfection, the people still turn to a drug called soma to run away from their unhappiness. The drug sponsored by the state to reduce or eliminate feelings of misery and grief that a normal human being should feel. Non-toxic, with no after effects, soma the perfect drug dulling the senses against any unwanted feelings and the emptiness of life (Huxley 24). Soma a powerful and essential tool for social control in the dystopia because it prevents the dissatisfaction and rage that might result in revolution (Huxley 24).

It is no lie that the United States has diversity—but that does not stop those at the top from trying to stomp any exhibition of that diversity out. Since the beginning, America has been driven by an innate sense of superiority that we have the right to do what we want to do as long as it furthers our democracy. Regrettably, the reality behind this notion is malevolent. In the past, Anglos “conquered” those from cultures who they saw as inferior for what they saw as the “greater good”; even today, we prosecute those from different cultures simply for being different and not conforming to the American norm. Sadly, with this goal of furthering the majority, the U.S. has forgotten the

World State citizens never grow old, at least not on the surface. Huxley explains how his characters “. . .keep their internal secretions artificially balanced at a youthful equilibrium” (111). The process described allows Huxley’s characters to continue to look young as their bodies grow old. Subsequently, a thirty year old character appears the same as a sixty year old character, their skin having never wrinkled or sagged. However, the retaining of youth does not suppress the internal effects of aging, the sixty year

The system of the World State in Brave New World can seem so far fetched, so different from life today. Through observing Brave New World, Revisited, it compares science and history in a light that parallels society to show that it may not be so far away from their reality. The lessons Huxley is portraying throughout the chapter, “Brainwashing” shows how dangerously achievable mass manipulation can bee because it is a slow transition of stripping the mind until there is no resistance left on the attacks of control to follow.

As man has progressed through the ages, there has been, essentially, one purpose. That purpose is to arrive at a utopian society, where everyone is happy, disease is nonexistent, and strife, anger, or sadness is unheard of. Only happiness exists. But when confronted with Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, we come to realize that this is not, in fact, what the human soul really craves. In fact, Utopian societies are much worse than those of today. In a utopian society, the individual, who among others composes the society, is lost in the melting pot of semblance and world of uninterest. The theme of Huxley's Brave New World is community, identity, and stability. Each of these three themes represents what a Brave New World society needs

This drug helps the people repress their authentic emotions and actions. In case something tragic were to happen to the people of the World State and they couldn’t be happy or anything equivalent instead of taking time to evaluate their feelings and find a real solution they just take soma to make those emotions go away “There 's always soma to calm your anger, to reconcile you to your enemies, to make you patient and long-suffering. In the past, you could only accomplish these things by making a great effort and after years of hard moral training. Now, you swallow two or three half-gram tablets, and there you are. Anybody can be virtuous now. Christianity without tears, that 's what soma is" (Huxley 285). Mustapha Mond wants the people of the World State to witness and experience how easy it is to forget about old emotions that only get in the way of consuming and not producing just by taking soma and nothing more. He wants them to see that by taking soma all their problems will go away, Mond uses the idea that if it worked for a few people then it will work for everyone else and that people don’t need to pay attention to their actions or feelings if the can suppress long enough until they die. Through and through the novel people tend to make a negative comment and say next “there is always soma, delicious soma" (Huxley 67). Soma is characterized as fixing something or anything that went wrong. Soma is an abused drug in

Aldous Huxley wrote the novel, Brave New World, without a slight notion of what the future would hold. However, throughout the plot of the story, there were many concepts and themes that are prevalent in today’s society. Brave New World is a story that revolves around the idea of a dark utopia. All forms of normality were thrown out during the writing process. The beliefs that everybody belonged to everybody, and marriage was disgusting were praised in the society. Children were made by the hundreds in test tubes every day, and from that point on were classified by their chosen social standing. These kids grew up without a familial setting, however, they were taught through their sleep. The adults they would eventually turn into would follow their given path, and obey the societal normality's. Despite the numerous means of teaching, their was one man that always went against his society. Bernard and his ally, John, shook the World State to its core with their presence. In the World State, the leaders allowed abounding activities and administered forms of drugs in order to keep their civilians naïve. The use of soma and the scientific process, conditioning, preserved the ignorant bliss of the World State.