Friday 30 January 2009

Brave New World Blog IV

4) One of the most difficult questions to answer about this book is why all of this is so very bad. Many people have described Huxley’s vision of the future as “horrifying.” However, the fact remains that everyone in the society is really happy, really content, really without war, or pain, or suffering. So what’s so bad about it, “really”? It’s often an easy answer to feel but a difficult one to verbalize. Respond to this issue. If you want to say it’s not so bad, and you really mean it, that is all right, too. Just be specific and thoughtful.

I think it comes down to two things: how shallow you are and the Savage's argument that I explained from the last blog. Really shallow people, who only care about material and physical pleasure wouldn't find this society bad at all. The society offers everything except intellectual freedom, and people who like to think would find it restrictive because of the lack of mental opportunity. Physical pleasure overload is not the same thing as mental happiness. A botanist may feel happier sitting in poison ivy in the middle of some forsaken wilderness without any comforts of civilization than in a luxury hotel with five-course meals and free massages. Sure, the poor dude will get rashes and frostbite and maybe depression from being alone and a sprained ankle or two, but hey, he discovered an all-new species of mushroom, which is worth the world to him much more than any luxury hotel could be. That kind of happiness is what the society of Brave New World lacks, and it is why it is only restrictive to those who are deeper mentally and want something more than just physical/material pleasures. They don't get to think or explore new things or experience intellectual satisfaction, and that is what is restrictive and 'bad' about the society. It's like being shown the cover of a book you think could be really interesting, or a song you think you might like, or a movie you think you want to see, but being denied the chance to ever read it, or listen to it, or see it. Or sometimes you just want to watch any movie, or read any book, or listen to anything, but you can't and you don't know why, and they serve you pie and an aphrodisiac instead. A shallower person might be like, cool, pie and sex! or whatever, but you're not. You're different and want more than physical freedom. (Which they have. Nobody directly tried to stop the Savage from doing whatever he wanted, or tried to make that one girl who was forced to live on the Reservation to come back).

No comments: