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Student 2 Mrs. Verenkoff English 2H, Period 2 4 September 2010 Leave Me Alone: Deliberations on Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World QUOTATION: Mustapha Mond, a prevalent leader of utopian society, explains to the Savage how his ideal and perfect state manages to annihilate individualistic ideals. He states: “We make them hate solitude; and we arrange their lives so that it’s almost impossible for them to ever have it” (160). ANALYSIS: What Aldous Huxley is attempting to prove in writing Brave New World, is that loneliness helps shape the human identity. In his novel, the populace of a futuristic civilization never has to feel solitude, which leads to an obedient, and ultimately happy, work force. They long for the security of large groups, conducting orgies and sensual plays to unify them. What the citizens have become are shallow and easily-controlled zombie sheep, traveling around in packs and loathing the concept of individualism. As Mond also says, “It would upset the whole social order if men started doing things on their own” (161). When a human being is alone, he starts to think, and the thoughts he envisions could lead to the revolutionizing of society, which would be detrimental to a stable utopia. Therefore, the government quells the human identity by encouraging people to never be alone because only through solitude can people truly achieve deep contemplation. People in The World State are always surrounded by other people, which is similar to modern society. Today, people are always connected to other people, with few exceptions. A technologically savvy individual can check his e-mail, update Facebook, and tweet to his followers, all whilst sitting on the toilet. Through “connection” websites, friends can always be in contact, even when they may be physically separated. Due to the constant stream of chatty babble, solitude is becoming a thing of the past, and people are becoming more and more shallow, though it is unlikely ever to reach the severity of Brave New World. With a never-ending connection to other people, individualism is being eroded away, one person at a time |
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