Imagine a society in which its citizens have forfeited all personal liberties for government protection and stability; Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, explores a civilization in which this hypothetical has become reality. The inevitable trade-off of citizens’ freedoms for government protection traditionally follows periods of war and terror. The voluntary degradation of the citizens’ rights begins with small, benign steps to full, totalitarian control. Major methods for government control and censorship are political, religious, economic, and moral avenues. Huxley’s Brave New World provides a prophetic glimpse of government censorship and control through technology; the citizens of the World State mimic those of the real world by trading …show more content…
The World State forbids the citizens from experiencing any negative emotion, for fear of losing control. Soma, Latin for sleep, renders its users to a coma-like blissful state, which Congdon describes, borrowing the statement from Huxley himself, that soma allows the citizens to,“periodically escape from the pressure of routine and worldly cares”(Congdon). Citizens are conditioned to use the drug at the slightest challenge to the cultural norms, preventing any thoughts of rebellion or contempt against the government.
Moreover, the World State explicitly harvests this “religious emotion” through requiring the citizens to prescribe to their own self-made religion, Fordism. As practitioners of Fordism, the citizens of the World State revere real world Henry Ford as their savior. Huxley utilizes satirical comparisons between Christianity and Fordism to illuminate that today’s government utilizes Christianity in a similar way, to quell the masses. Huxley uses obvious parodies such as switching “Our Lord” for “Our Ford” and cutting the tops off all crosses so they resemble T’s, a reference to Ford’s Model T car, to bring the truth to light without explicitly stating the fact. The followers of Ford also attend regular “Solidarity Services.” These services are comprised of twelve individuals sitting around a table while they sing hymns and ingest soma until the climax of an
Soma is a means of mind control in Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World. Soma is a drug given to the citizens of the World State to make them more euphoric and to better accept their fate as citizens in this dystopian society. The scientific basis of soma is that it is an opiate that makes the user feel happy; the user feels happy and is therefore easily manipulated. It could be argued that soma is basically alcohol; people take it to escape from reality and to feel better about themselves. Soma is significant to the novel because the government uses soma to control the World State citizens and take away their individuality, which makes them easier
Totalitarianism diminishes the idea of individuality and destroys all chances of self-improvement, and human’s natural hunger for knowledge. In George Orwell’s famous novel, “1984”, totalitarianism is clearly seen in the exaggerated control of the state over every single citizen, everyday, everywhere. Totalitarianism can also be seen in the book “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley, in which humans are synthetically made and conditioned for their predestinated purpose on earth. The lack of individualism will lead a community towards a dystopia in which freedom is vanished by the uncontrolled power of the state.
In Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World the use of soma clouds peoples ability to experience natural human emotions. It deprives people from understanding who they are as a human being and what they value. The drug is used as a hallucinogen and an antidepressant. Soma was designed for people to consume it when they got into tough situations or just needed a quick “holiday” away from reality. Even Bernard, who was once against the use of soma, began taking it and acting just like everyone else.
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
In Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley, there is a drug used and mentioned throughout the story called Soma. The characters have been conditioned by birth that Soma is always the answer when you feel alone or sad. This drug is used so people can go on "holidays" from their reality and is used as payment for the lower caste groups. People want Soma because they go on these highs and live in their "Heaven" to escape reality. After all, they do call Soma "All the advantages of Christianity and alcohol; none of their defects"(Huxley 54). Soma becomes a tool to control the people in society.
In Brave New World Huxley is targeting consumer, materialistic attitudes that existed in his time (and still do today) and extrapolating, then projecting them into the world that is the World State, to serve as a warning to society of the consequences of these attitudes. The passage in question is from Chapter XIV of Huxley’s Brave New World, and more specifically features the incident in which the ‘Savage’, John, visits his dying mother at a hospital, and subsequently instigates a riot because of soma, which he abhors.
Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, like most satires, addresses several issues within society. Huxley accomplishes this by using satirical tools such as parody, irony, allusion. He does this in order to address issues such as human impulses, drugs, and religion. These issues contribute to the meaning of the work as a whole by pointing out the disadvantages of having too much control within society.
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.
In conclusion, it is safe to say that Huxley 's utopia went about achieving its status in the wrong way. Mankind has lost its free will to the controlling powers of a system. This system cannot be called government, as it is more akin in characteristics to slavery. Man no longer has freewill and order is kept not through respect and intellect, but via degeneration and conduct. The former sections of this essay present strategies and techniques used to maintain order in a society of individuals. Finally, it may be argued that the Brave New World protects society by locking them in a cage of ignorance; however, this is at the cost of freedom, and this is unacceptable. Mankind needs be free in order to progress as has been explained. Protection is all well and good but not at the cost of
In the novel Brave New World, Aldous Huxley creates a scenario where the government has control over the people and their ideas. Throughout the novel, we are shown the different methods and techniques the leaders utilize to control the lives of the people. After reading the story, we can point out similarities of government control from our world and the book. Huxley has a message for us about government power and what it could do to us.
Many people have sought to evaluate the vulnerabilities associated with states and markets that are under totalitarianism, which is a political system in which the state holds total authority over the society. First developed in 1920 by the Italian fascists, and in particular Benito Mussolini, who ruled Italy for over twenty years, totalitarianism embossed the minds of those who lived under it. This system was conceptualized mainly to highlight the similarities between Nazi Germany and other fascist states. There’s one underlying difference that one must understand for one to assess the restrictions that totalitarianism puts on one’s liberty. One should realize that totalitarianism states are states where there is a single party rule, where a dictatorship is type of government in which a single person rules. Aldous Huxley and George Orwell are famous authors who opposed totalitarianism, and through their philosophical ideals, attempted to inform people of the dangers faced by society under this restricting system, where people are inhibited from holding any sort of authority. George Orwell, in 1984, discusses concerns relating to big government and big brother and Aldous Huxley, in Brave New World, discusses predatory markets impinging on our personal freedoms. Through their works, they attempt to question societal beliefs on brute force and physical coercion verses the manipulation of preferences and tastes leading to willing submission. George Orwell and Aldous Huxley each
The media could be determined a tremendous and powerful weapon. If used properly, it can provide society with great benefits, but if used in negative ways, it can destroy. In a modern world where information can spread as fast as wildfires, a reason to monitor or limit types of media appear rational, but along with that, irrational cases still exist. This argument has circled in the United States for a while and a decision needs to be made. Parents and citizens around the United States think concerningly about what our eyes witness on the news, in stores, on billboards, etc. When the government determines what appears in the media, it not only belittles citizens, but it denies the First Amendment, which states the basic rights of an American. Censorship of the media, as displayed in 1984, clearly exhibits the violation of the First Amendment, rightfully given to the citizens of the United States, by the founding fathers of this country.
The formative years of the 1900’s, suffered from communism, fascism, and capitalism. The author of the Brave New World, Mr. Aldous Huxley lived in a social order in which he had been exposed to all three of these systems. In the society of the Brave New World, which is set 600 years into the future, individuality is not condoned and the special motto “Community, Identity, Stability” frames the structure of the Totalitarian Government.
In light of current events, society is more concerned than ever about just how much power the government has over people. Individuals are concerned that those in charge might implement policies that could deteriorate certain groups’ quality of living. To some, this may be foolish, but as is shown in some novels, this could happen, and when it does, it is hard to combat. In both George Orwell’s 1984 and Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World authors depict societies under strict government control. These instances display to readers the issues that arise when governments lead through excessive limitation and by demanding conformity.
The future of the world is a place of thriving commerce and stability. Safety and happiness are at an all-time high, and no one suffers from depression or any other mental disorders. There are no more wars, as peace and harmony spread to almost every corner of the world. There is no sickness, and people are predestined to be happy and content in their social class. But if anything wrong accidentally occurs, there is a simple solution to the problem, which is soma. The use of soma totally shapes and controls the utopian society described in Huxley's novel Brave New World as well as symbolize Huxley's society as a whole. This pleasure drug is the answer to all of