Brave New World: Discussion Questions

Why did Aldous Huxley write a social satire like Brave New World?

Aldous Huxley wrote this book in 1931, as a warning against rapid, unchecked industrialization and consumerism.

In the 1920s, just as global powers were reinventing themselves in the aftermath of the First World War, world leaders prioritized economic and industrial growth over social development. Huxley, a pacifist, was deeply concerned by this trend and his literary works explore the potential dangers of unchecked industrial and technological growth. Brave New World represents these concerns, and, in doing so, remains relevant even today.

Compare the characters of Bernard Marx, Mustapha Mond, and Helmholtz Watson. They are all misfits, yet one of them is a world leader. What makes the world leader different?

Bernard Marx and Helmholtz Watson are good friends at the beginning of the novel. They are Alphas with mid-senior professional roles. Mustapha Mond, also an Alpha, is a “Controller”—effectively the ruler of all of Western Europe.

While Bernard Marx is diminutive and not considered attractive, Watson is a highly attractive Alpha male. Both men are misfits because they prefer solitude to the regulated social engagements enjoyed by others, especially the social consumption of soma. They also enjoy each other’s company.

Bernard and Watson struggle with their individuality, which is mostly expressed in their critical questioning and rejection of the status quo. Mustapha Mond, on the other hand, is a powerful man who was also once a misfit. However, he becomes a world leader by actively suppressing his curiosity and sense of wonder. Though he claims that there is no room for art in a stable civilization, Mustapha continues to own books and works of art. Mustapha thus comes across as a person who enjoys the best of both worlds. He believes that there is no such thing as complete freedom, which seems to have made it possible for him to lead a balanced life. On the other hand, Bernard and Watson desire complete freedom.

How does Brave New World warn readers of the dangers of the rampant use of technology?

At the very beginning, readers are introduced to the artificial method of reproduction employed in London. There is no natural birth in this society; instead, one embryo is altered to produce dozens of babies via the Bokanovsky method—all children are produced in labs and sleep-trained as embryos.

For entertainment, the civilized world relies on technologically produced and enhanced music shows and films. Even pleasures, physical and otherwise, are mediated by technology. People do not relate to nature in the civilized world. Only the “savages” remain connected with nature. In effect, the novel suggests that too much technology can result in peoples’ detachment not just from nature but also from their own humanity.

Is Brave New World relevant to the contemporary world?

Brave New World was written nearly a hundred years ago, yet it remains deeply relevant to the contemporary world. The novel depicts a civilized world wherein humans are completely reliant on technology. In fact, the novel suggests that civilization should not be construed solely as the possession of immense technological prowess. It highlights the dangers of sacrificing human agency for technology. This aspect of the novel seems especially relevant to the contemporary world.

Characters are woken up by alarm clocks that keep track of their sleep cycles; food is genetically modified, and some food products are manufactured to enhance sexual energy or appetite. They also have drugs that make them “happy” without causing hangovers or headaches, just as they have chemical substances to keep their bodies young. These are not far-fetched ideas; the situations described in the novel have now materialized. In the novel, the civilized have no option other than to rely on these technologies. In the real world, however, we do have the freedom to say no.

What is the attitude of the novel’s society toward family?

In the novel, the civilized world regards family as a gross reminder of the past, as an impediment to the progress of industrial civilization. The civilized world also regards marriage, love, and friendship as undesirable human conventions. Humans are produced in labs to avoid bonds such as kinship, and are conditioned as embryos to disregard emotional impulses.

Ford, who is spoken of as a god-like character in the novel but never really introduced, is the founding father of this “civilized” society. His books and commandments line the walls of all major offices and factories—much like in a cult or commune.