Brave New World and ‘Gattaca’

While reading the Brave New World, the book made me wonder if it was possible for our society to turn into the Brave New World society, in the future. I also wondered if anyone that read this book thought it was a good idea to change into the Brave New World society, or even wished for it to. When our technology is much advanced like the Brave New World, so advanced so that humans could be born from bottles, would people choose to let their children be born from them?

I think Brave New World has similar technology as the movie ‘Gattaca’, and I can relate them to each other. Just like the Brave New World being able to control everyone’s intelligence, and their castes, in ‘Gattaca’, parents were able to choose their own children’s talents (abilities), which made their society extremely unfair for those who were naturally born. Since I’ve watched/read both stories, although both of them seem possible, I think the society in ‘Gattaca’ seems more likely for our modern society to change into. In the Brave New World, I wondered if it would be possible to have everyone agreeing that their children would be born from bottles, and chosen to be in certain castes, doing the work their told to do, without choice. On the other hand, in ‘Gattaca’, the parents are given choices, if they wanted their children to be born naturally or not. Although I think it would be more likely for them to choose children who are born with technology, I think it is more likely to happen since people are given the ‘choice’.

Brave New World Chapter 16-18 Summary

John, Bernard, and Helmoltz are brought to Mustapha Mond’s office, and John is excited that Mustapha Mond knows about Shakespeare. Mond asks John if he likes the society, and John admits that he doesn’t. John asks questions to Mond, and they have a debate about the Brave New World. For example, they talk about why the society isn’t only full of Alphas, or there are no books like Shakespeare. During the debate, Mond explains that the reason why there aren’t only Alphas in the society, is because Alphas wouldn’t do the work of Epsilons, and it would lead to no work getting done. He said it theoretically didn’t make sense, but they also had an experiment (the Cyprus experiment), where there had a large number of Alphas tested to live on an island, to left to govern their own selves. It turned out to be exactly as what they had imagined, they soon had World Wars, and later asked the World Controllers to take charge again. In the end, Mond states that he believes ‘stability’ is the most important thing to have in a society, because he believes it leads to happiness. And he believes that in order for stability to be consistent in a society, they have to sacrifice art. John disagrees but he doesn’t argue. Bernard and Helmoltz are sent to an island, except John, who has to stay because Mond wants to continue his experiment. John chooses an old abandoned lighthouse to live in, and whips himself in ‘remorse for his sins’. People discover his ‘whippings’, and news reporters visit him. John uses violence against them, and whips Lenina, as she appears in front of John- who is not in the right mind. Later on, John remembers what he’d done, and hangs himself.

In these chapters, I think the author used the World Controller, Mustapha Mond to answer various questions about the Brave New World. For example, why there aren’t only Alphas in the society, or books like Shakespeare. Some of the questions were what I also had in mind, and I agreed to Mond’s explanation/response to John’s questions, except when he said that stability leads to happiness. I don’t believe that stability is the main cause for happiness, at least in the Brave New World. In the Brave New World, I believe that it was mostly ‘soma’ that caused people to be “happy”.

I agree with John how there should be art, although it may cause you unhappiness, they may also give you happiness as well. Also, when Mustapha Mond makes John stay in the Brave New World, I believe it was because he wanted to take this chance to see what would happen to the Savage if he stayed in the Brave New World, and also use it for future references.

Brave New World Chapter 11-15 Summary

After John recognizes the DHC as his father in front of hundreds of workers, the DHC resigns of humiliation. Everyone’s attention focuses on John and Bernard. In order to meet John, everyone treats Bernard respectfully. Bernard becomes selfish, boasting about the changes in his life to Helmholtz. When Helmholtz doesn’t respond or agree with Bernard’s opinions, Bernard decides that he’d never talk to him again. Meanwhile, John tries to stop Linda from having more ‘soma’, but fails. The doctor states that if she keeps having ‘soma’ this often; she will only be able to live for another month or two. 

John thinks he likes Lenina, but cannot tell her that he does. They go to a feely (which is similar to a movie, but you can feel all five senses). John finds the plot horrible, while Lenina thinks it was lovely. After the feely, they take a taxicopter and arrive at Lenina’s apartment. Lenina expects John to have her, but John just leaves after saying, ‘Good night’. When he goes back to his room and reads Othello, it reminds him of the feely. In the meantime, Lenina is shocked and confused at John’s behavior, wondering if John likes her or not. 

Since everyone wants to meet John, Bernard invites everyone to a party, where he promises them that John will show up. On the actual day of the party, John refuses to show up. Everyone including the Arch-Community-Songster’ is disappointed and furious at Bernard. He loses all the respect and changes he gained after he brought John, and Lenina begins to think that John didn’t appear because he doesn’t like her.

When Fanny and Lenina are having a conversation, Fanny tells her that she should go for another man, but Lenina tells Fanny that it cannot be anyone else other than John. After Lenina takes soma, she visits him who opens the door thinking it is Helmholtz. John explains to Lenina that he wanted to show her that he loved her, but Lenina doesn’t understand him. Instead of listening to John’s explanation about his concept of ‘love’, Lenina asks him if he loves her. When she confirms that he does, she begins to kiss him and remove her clothes. Disappointed in Lenina, John tells her to get out of his sight. Lenina locks herself in the bathroom while John gets a phone call from the hospital. John runs out of the room, and Lenina leaves after he’s gone. 

John arrives at the Three Lane Hospital, and asks a nurse about Linda, telling her that she’s his mother. At the word of ‘mother’, the nurse blushes and takes John to Linda. Linda sings a childhood song, and John sits beside her bed. A group of Delta children who were being death conditioned, stop by and call her awful. John is furious at the children, and warns the nurse to keep them away from Linda’s bed. When Linda is conscious again, she mistakes John for Popé. John tries his best to make Linda recognize him, and when she finally does, she tries to speak, “Everyone belongs to every…” but she cannot finish her sentence. John quickly runs to the nurse, but by the time they are back, she’s already dead. John kneels beside her bed, and the nurse worries that the Delta children would be de-conditioned by his behaviour. One of the Delta twins asks if Linda’s dead, and John pushes him to the ground.

John leaves the room, and he sees a young Alpha distributing soma, and people crowding to receive them. John thinks of Linda, how she was ‘enslaved’ by soma until she died. He stops the Deltas receiving soma and tells them to ‘Throw it away’. As they hear the sentence, they begin to search for a telephone number. Helmoltz receives a call about John, and leaves to the hospital with Bernard. When they arrive, John is making a speech to the Deltas about the freedom in the ‘Brave New World’, throwing soma out the window. The Deltas lose their patience, making their way to John. But on the way, they get into a fight among themselves. Helmoltz runs to help John, but Bernard hesitates and shouts for help instead. The policemen arrive, and spray soma in the air. The Deltas immediately stop, and hugs one another, apologizing. Bernard takes this chance to escape, but gets caught. John, Helmoltz and Bernard follow the Sergeant who leads them to the police car. 

While I was reading these chapters, I thought it was unfortunate for Lenina and John, that they cannot understand each other, and cannot love because their concepts of ‘love’ are different. I somehow understood Lenina, how confused she would’ve been; because she didn’t know what she was doing wrong, and why John was now mad at her. I also pity Bernard, how his life totally changed after he brought John into the ‘Civilized Land’, but everything he acquired had disappeared due to John’s unexpected behaviour. Furthermore, he’d been treated worse than before, not just as an outcast, but also everyone being furious at him. I noticed how he changed significantly in these chapters. Before he brought John and gained all respect from everyone, he thought differently from other people in the ‘civilized land’, and Lenina found him queer, always. However, he doesn’t have any curiosity or rebellion against the society anymore, and has become one of people who accept their society as it is. When they were given the choice to leave to one of the islands, that was when I realized there were more people that had questions about their society, or couldn’t fit into their society.