1.
The exposition is concerned with depicting the futuristic setting. Human beings are now segregated by castes of physical and social differences engrained since before their “birth”. ( Genetically engineered and artificially birthed) Bernard is the main character who is a member of the alphas, the highest case, but is ostracized for being shorter and “overdeveloped” mentally to compensate. Rumors float around that an error occurred when he was being developed. These shortcomings make life difficult for Bernard especially that he struggles to have success with women. He develops a desire for Lenina Crowne, an alpha predisposed to promiscuity just as all are this this society. He gains the nerve to ask her out and she agrees; she is intrigued by him. He is hesitant to “have her,” as society would approve, but eventually gives in to temptation. Meanwhile, his work is dwindling and he is threatened to be exported to Iceland. He fears this situation and as if to take his mind off of it decides to take Lenina to see the savages. They go and while there they are horrified by the customs and natural aging of the people there. They run into two fair-skinned savages, a mother and a sun. The mother turns out to have been part of their society once and was lost at the reservation. She was also impregnated and had no opportunity to take the mandatory birth control and was forced to do the “obscene” act of giving birth. The boy is a curious mixture of two clashing cultures and recounts his struggles growing up with the savages. He yearns for acceptance and follows their customs yet dreams of the land his mother tells him of. Bernard sees potential for salvation in his career with these two and decides to bring them back for experiments. The mother returns to her society and immediately takes soma, a powerful sedative that produces elation. The drug is usually harmless, but she takes so much that she is headed quickly to the grave. Her aged face and figure also repulse her peers. The boy, John, is at first enthralled by the land. Bernard uses him to further his career and quickly receives fame and status unlike anything he had experienced. Soon, John is disillusioned with society. He goes on a date with Lenina and is disgusted with the modern form of entertainment and returns home to read Shakespeare. He gains a friend in the writer Hemholtz, who can’t quite relate with Shakespeare but wants more from his writing. One day John refuses to meet the people Bernard had arranged and Bernard is promptly demoted to a failure. John is depressed and goes to visit his dying mother. He further angered and blames the death on soma. He finds where the drug his being distributed and throws it out the window, causing an uproar. Hemholtz and Bernard try to help and they end up all being punished. They have a discussion with Mustapha Mond, the Controller. He describes why the society is the way it is and says they must be banished; but that they were probably prefer the company that they find over there. John decides to live ascetically in and abandoned tower on his own hoping to purify himself. He finds peace briefly before being harangued by interviewers. His rituals are filmed and publicized and became a public sensation. He is now tortured by even more visitors, one of whom is Lenina. His desire for her, which he sees and impure, infuriates her and he whips both her and himself. He is then involuntarily sedated by soma. He wakes up and remembers everything that happens. He is later found by the press having hung himself.
2.
The theme of this novel is satisfaction, or rather the lack of it. The three main characters are all victims to varying degrees of dissatisfaction. Bernard is dissatisfied with the shallowness of his life and remains so until he is no longer ostracized; his dissatisfaction was quelled when he became a “normal” member of society. Hemholtz is so skilled a writer that he sees the shallowness in his own writing and seeks for something more. John he ostracized as a savage and reveres the society his mother tells him of. He finds it completely unsatisfactory. The discussion with the Controller reveals that society must choose between happiness and truth and beauty; the lack of the latter leaves the three individuals unsatisfied.
3.
Allusion- the novel is packed with allusions-to Ford, to the Bible, and mostly to Shakespeare. (Pg 131,133, 238)
Contrast- the promiscuity of the future is contrasted with the asceticism of the savages (110)
Ambiguity- Huxley used abbreviations from the future that leave the meanings unclear. Often they are explained later in the book.
Analogy-(pg 238) “Christianity without tears- that’s what soma is.” The analogy compares the necessities of the past and the necessities of the current age.
Euphemism-the characters of the future are always gossiping on who is “having” who, a euphemism for sexual relations. The euphemism angers Bernard and feels it treats women lie “a piece of meat”
Evocation- when a certain event hits home with John, he usually brings up a relevant Shakespeare text. If the reader has read Shakespeare, the passage evocates memories and feelings from the particular text. (183, 131)
Implication- the novel ends with John’s feet seen dangling. The reader is to imply that he has hung himself. (259)
Incongruity- the great advancements of civilization are incongruous with the regressions of the “savages”
Vernacular-dialogue in the novel is spoken with more technical and scientific terms to demonstrate the advancement of civilization.
Imagery-“behind them, in the west, the crimson and orange were almost faded; a dark bank of cloud had crept into the zenith.” This type of language is used to depict the futuristic setting.
Pathos- the extreme future portrayed is an attempt to caution the public and is appealing to emotion; more specifically, fear.
4.
The narrator’s tone is extremely professional and scientific, displaying the advance in technology. In the first chapter, phrases like “optimum temperature, salinity, viscosity; referred to the liquor in which the detached and ripened eggs were kept” are very common. The tone later in the book tends to reflect more despair. Passages concerning John were often like this. On page 235, “The Savage nodded gloomily. At Malpais he had suffered because they had shut him out from the communal activities of the pueblo, in civilized London he was suffering because he could never escape from those communal activities, never be quietly alone,” and tone of despair in a no-win situation is presented. This tone is furthered and more alarming later when John exiles himself. “Then suddenly remembering-everything. ‘Oh my God! Oh my God!’ He covered his eyes with his hand.”
Characterization-
1.
Early in the novel, Lenina is developed directly. Her physical appearance is described as “like a pearl illuminated from within, pinkly glowing. More direct characterization is evident with the savages, who are described by the author with “their black hair was braided with fox fur and flannel. Bernard on the other hand is first characterized indirectly in the conversation between Fanny and Lenin. “‘They say he doesn’t like Obstacle Golf’” and “’He spends most of his time by himself- alone!’” Fanny is also developed in these scenes. Her disgust for people who are unorthodox to her society his evident in her dialogue about Bernard.
2.
The author narrates most when describing the setting or the appearances of the characters. When he is doing this, he becomes more descriptive. For example, he mentions small things lie “their dark eyes looked at her, but without any sign of recognition.”
3.
Bernard is dynamic. He changes greatly when he has success. He becomes shallower and more orthodox. When his success is taken away, he returns to a more sensitive character, but now he is more cowardly because, having experienced the full pleasures of civilization, fears losing them. In this way he is a round character because he evolves as the story goes.
4.
I did feel like I had met a character because they showed relatable experiences. The three characters that are different form the rest of society- Bernard, Hemholtz, and John all show human qualities. For example, the frustration Bernard shows (“Bernard went off in a huff. Never, he told himself, never would he speak to Hemholtz again.”) is very relatable.
