Brave New Essay

Prompt

Compare and contrast our modern world with the world described in Brave New World.

Essay

Roses and electric shocks, the khaki of Deltas and a whiff of asafœtida–wedded indissolubly before the child can speak. But wordless conditioning is crude and wholesale; cannot bring home the finer distinctions, cannot inculcate the more complex courses of behaviour. For that there must be words, but words without reason. In brief, hypnopædia." This quote is referencing the training of children. In the infantry, the workers begin to train and convince children what they like and dislike at a young age. It's the same thing with advertising and social media. With all these commercials, TV shows and new social internet apps, it's difficult to tell what we like and do not like. We are trained at a young age to like and want certain things. Many commercials in children's shows advertise new toys and movies. Advertisers around the globe attempt to make more appealing commercials for children in hopes to spark their interest. If the commercial is a success, they begin to play it repeatedly so that the child see's it more often until they ask their parents to retrieve that item for them.  Just like in Brave New World, people today take advantage of the mind of a child so that they can control their desires (or hatred) .

As the book progresses, the similarities become more apparent. The one similarity that Huxley seems to drag throughout, is the importance of sex. Sex was originally a sacred act between man and wife. In the modern world, people are having sex as early as twelve, thirteen years old. As the years go by, sex seems to decrease in value even more. Remaining a virgin until marriage used to be so common, now virgins come one in a million.  "But seriously," she said, "I really do think you ought to be careful. It's such horribly bad form to go on and on like this with one man. At forty, or thirty-five, it wouldn't be so bad. But at your age, Lenina! No, it really won't do. And you know how strongly the D.H.C. objects to anything intense or long-drawn. Four months of Henry Foster, without having another man – why, he'd be furious if he knew."

"Six years later it was being produced commercially, the perfect drug." Drugs.Can't live with them and you can't live without them (medicine), but why is it that drugs seem too be a trend lately? Rappers make songs about drugs, Netflix is littered in documentaries about drugs, not to mention almost every good movie has a drug seen. Though illegal, drugs seem to be widely accepted in this day and age. If you're not doing them, you know somebody who does. In Brave New World, everyone took a drug called Soma, to provide a euphoric feeling that eliminates pain and suffering. When life seems down, take drugs. When life seems confusing, take drugs. When life seems hard, take drugs. It's all about drugs. Soma is so widely accepted in Brave New World, everyone does it and everyone living large because of it. In China, citizens take a pill that goes by the name "Ya Ba". It's a meth based pill that allows them to work longer hours and stay happy. Some bosses give it to their workers and many entrepreneurs use is to get ahead, people are dependent on it. Almost like in Brave New World, people take Soma to be happy and continue on with their lives and just like Chinese citizens. "And do remember that a gramme is better than a damn." They went out, laughing."

Sex, Drugs and Power, everything our world revolves around now. Wars are started and lives are ended everyday in thanks to these three things. In fact, they make the world go round. One can only wonder what's next for this world.