Brave New World. Aldous Huxley

Many people deal through life's difficulties without pausing to consider the environment that nature has created for their survival. Huxley's novel is about a world in which impulses and pleasure dominate people who have been taught to feel that they have life independence while, in fact, they are enslaved by passions. While a summary of Brave New Future exposes the effects of instant gratification consumerism and industrial culture, a synthesis reveals that dystopian society is completely parallel to the current social world.
Argument:
Just the contemporary society, the Brave New World is a state that is controlled by the desire for instant gratification. Huxley provides many examples of people whose lives run by immediate pleasure. For instance, Fanny complains to Lenina about the duration of time that they have stayed together with Henry; the period is expressed in such a way that one may think of years when in actual sense, she was referring to 4 months. Surprisingly Lenina agrees to the fact that the duration of 4 months is long (Huxley 34). People in the book, are socialized to believe that there is no need of staying with a partner for too long before engaging in sexual activities. In as much as I agree with Huxley that the story creates some sense of what happens in a dystopia, the message in the book does not reflect the kind of behavior that correspond to norms of most societies. In our cultures, we are taught to be patient about issues regarding intimacy and always expected to do the right things. On the other hand the people; in the Brave New World do not understand the concept of "waiting." Despite the fact that there are differences between the modern society and that of BNW, we both seem to demand instant gratification. As humans we like to deny the issues surrounding immediate satisfaction; however, a close examination reveals that the levels are just almost the same. When an innovation like a new brand of phone, many people do not wait but instead develop the desire to own it.

As Exhibit:

The author uses consumerism as a tool for controlling the desire for instant pleasure in both the BNW and the modern society. The babies in the novel are all fake, as they are formed in the labs and grown in the bottles. Creation of babies takes place through chemicals as opposed to the usual biological procedures. The babies do not have their feelings. Instead, they are manufactured and programmed to have no feelings so that the thinking of everyone is the same. In the novel, Huxley talks about soma which is a drug that induces instant happiness, and those who do not take it like Henry Foster are considered deviant (Huxley 46-47). In our society, consumerism has been finding its roots for the last one decade. For example, one may wish to have an iPhone and at the same time wants to be enjoined in the new trends. I agree with Huxley’s assertion that making new friends needs complementation on the consumables like clothes, makeup, accessories, among others. In school situations, chalkboards are not used anymore, and instead, teachers type up the homework, notes and explain what needs to be done, because technology is highly consumed in the current generation (Huxley). Indeed, consumerism is starting to become a scary part of life as we are letting it take over us, and nobody seems to be bothered with looking for ways to stop it from hovering our lives.

Brave New World Revisited. Aldous Huxley

Brave New World Revisited is another novel by Aldous Huxley which mainly focuses on freedom and its enemies in the society. The central theme of the book has a foundation on the fact that the fictitious world that had been created in the Brave New World was coming to pass. The events of the Cold war, the totalitarian world state, the communist dictatorship, were some of the possibilities that prompted the author to find hope that was missing in the BNW by actually revisiting the previous work.

As Background:

Huxley used the modern postwar world to acknowledge the work of George Orwell of 1984. The author points out that the control and powers that leaders had in the communist nations. The death of Stalin in the Soviet Union at least brought to an end the traditional form of the universal tyranny that had existed in the society. In the late 1950’s the government of the Soviet State made attempts to control high-0ranking individuals with rewards, just like was the case with the Brave New World. On the other hand, the punishment was still in use as a means of enforcing conformity on the masses. According to Huxley, the future is more like the Brave new world as opposed to Orwell’s 1984. In the Western nations people spending, thoughts and the political loyalty is dictated by the pleasure and distraction facilitated by those in power. I agree with Huxley's belief that reward can jeopardize freedom since it can be introduced unconsciously, and be continued indefinitely through the support of the subjects.

As of Argument:

Huxley’s work sounds a warning to the readers that who accepts a world that they would otherwise reject if they were conscious of its nature. However, we note from the text that people seldom the reality they are living because of consumerism and pleasure, just like the citizens of the Brave New World who recognizes restraints of their society. By identifying propaganda as an enemy of freedom, the author uses Hitler’s case to get a solution that eluded him in the Brave New World. Education is one of the ways of resisting propaganda, and this is the responsibility of every individual. The government and the other authorities may oppose the unmasking of the anti-rational language for the reasons best known to themselves, but the only hope lies in the active mind which can make own judgments.

3. Globalization. Maria Jerskey

Globalization is a book which presents a collection of essays from different personalities. The articles are vibrant, challenging and diverse. The book invites the readers to explore what globalization means to their individual lives and the world as a world. The collection includes the interdisciplinary mix of the public, academic, and scientific selections providing rhetorical and compositional skills that allows one to participate in a learning discourse about globalization efficiently.

I. Globalization: Two Visions Of The Future Of Humanity. Marcelo Gleiser

In the essay, Marcelo Gleiser questions the effect of globalization on the world- will it make the world better or worse? The author agrees to the fact that trade and technological advances continue to make the world a global village. However, the fact of the matter is that distrust and many forms of discrimination like tribe remain entrenched in the society (Gleiser). Futurists like Mikio Kaku had predicted the effect of technology; and according to them, computers will overtake the world of knowledge and intelligence. To an extent, one is forced to agree with this going by the rate at which technology is changing the world. Every other day, innovation comes up to make the way of doing things better and more convenient, However, I disagree with Gleiser, that the computers can overtake the human intelligence. The brain of a human being is innate, and its ability to store information is beyond the comprehension of any other humanmade device. It is also imperative to note that no matter how intelligent may appear to be, it is a creation of man’s intelligence and therefore it would be wrong to imagine that man can make a device that overtakes his thinking ability.

II. Pursuing the Science of Happiness. Andrew Guest

Everyone desire to have a long-lasting happiness, something that may seem achievable but in reality, it is not (Guest). One cannot always be happy because human beings have other emotions that must also come to play, and the effect is that happiness has to change to adapt to the environment. In the essay, the author Andrew Guest initiates a discussion with the students about whether permanent moderate happiness is better than experiencing the full range of emotions comprising of highs and lows. Most students were for the different emotions, and I concur with them. The full range of emotions is a better option since every feeling is necessary for the enjoyment of life. Besides, happiness is only useful if it is spontaneous.

If people were to be permanently happy, then full enjoyment of life would not be possible since people adapt to their surroundings and the wants are insatiable. In the essay, the author quotes an old newspaper poll that finds that: when you ask people whose annual income is $30,000 about the amount that would satisfy their needs, a majority said $50,000. However, if you pose the same question to a different category earner, will too quote a higher amount and the implication here is that people adapt to what they have at any given moment, but would always want to have more to achieve happiness..

Teenagers’ a Threat. Donna Gaine

As Background:

The belief of the teenagers that adults “don’t understand” proves the struggle that exists between the youth and adults. Adults make assumptions about children according to their social behavior, and this pushes kids away. In the essay “Teenagers’ a Threat” by Donna Gaine, an emphasis is laid on the fact that the idea of youth alienation began with the adults themselves in the older societies, and that the teenagers have just maintained the ideology. The essays offer a discussion on who was mocked and misunderstood by both adults and reporters. I think that children should be given an opportunity to express their grievances as by doing this, they will be able to explain the misconceptions about themselves. Adults are a worried lot because of poor understanding of the youth culture; failure to accept that the youths will finally grow into adults, and the belief in instigation from the young generation.

As for Argument:

Gaine’s belief that misunderstanding between the adults and the youth is the primary cause of the gap between the two in the society is one that is likely to pose a debate (Gaine 64). Some people are likely to argue that the difference could be as a result of nature or nurture, as may be motivated by the social factors that play in children's upbringing. Many teenagers use a better part of their time looking someone to understand them. Some even end up giving up, after developing the feeling that no one knows what they are undergoing. The misunderstanding also exists between children and their immediate parents who at times do not understand their behavior. Considering a case where a child encounters a frequent change of schools, the parent may not be able to comprehend what the kid is undergoing. The child will have to make new friends, move, then restart the whole process. I hold the belief that nothing much can be done for adults to understand the younger generation fully. Human nature plays a role in placing a generation gap that cannot be fully understood. The parents may not make sufficient effort to understand the feelings of their young ones, and the impact of their decisions on the social lives of the teenagers.

According to (Gaine 64), the teenagers cause trouble for themselves by showing off their ability to create an identity for themselves. In spite of the fact that the youths would like to have a platform for self-expression, they find themselves in a situation where the only choice is to keep in and safeguard the emotions. The consequence is that the youths end up guarding their mental space because the adult controls everything else (Gaine 66). The teenagers are also unable to speak up because they are afraid that whatever they speak may be used against them for judgment purposes.



Work Cited

Aldous, Huxley. Brave New World Revisited: Further Thoughts on the Future. Munich: Ernst Klett Sprachen, 2008.

Gaine, Donna. "Teenagers' Threat." George, D. and J. Trimbur. Reading Culture. 4th ed. New York: Longman, 2001. 63-66.

Gleiser, Marcelo. "Globalization: Two Visions of the Future of Humanity." Jerskey, Maria. Globalization. ‎Oxford: Oxford, 2013.

Guest, Andre. "Pursuing the Science of Happiness." Jerskey, Maria. Globalization. Oxford: Oxford, 2013.

Huxley, Aldous. Brave new world. Munich: Ernst Klett Sprachen, 2008.



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