Originally published in 1932, this outstanding work of literature is more crucial and relevant today than ever before. Cloning, feel-good drugs, antiaging programs, and total social control through politics, programming, and media -- has Aldous Huxley accurately predicted our future? With a storyteller's genius, he weaves these ethical controversies in a compelling narrative that dawns in the year 632 AF (After Ford, the deity). When Lenina and Bernard visit a savage reservation, we experience how Utopia can destroy humanity. A powerful work of speculative fiction that has enthralled and terrified readers for generations, Brave New World is both a warning to be heeded and thought-provoking yet satisfying entertainment. - Container.
I love rereading these classics again as an adult. There is so much depth and nuance to the critique of society that was lost on my high school brain.
Can you exist as an individual entity in any form of civilization? Is there any freedom in the presence of social conditioning (secular or religious)? Can you strike a balance between the cost of social stability and individual freedom?
I'm sure there are many more questions to mull over, but the above is sufficient for now.
The ur-dystopia and soves the issue of presenting while also critiquing the future society most elegantly. Also avoids the easy clichés of bad futures.
There is much to be learned from reading this book and it is easy to forget that it was written early in the last century, not this one. Sadly, the warnings Huxley offers about what society was becoming were largely ignored and we've come to a society that so closely mirrors his "civilization" that it could have been a metaphor about our current state of affairs written by a contemporary author.
It is a very short novel but full of warnings and lessons that are as applicable, or even more so, today as they were in 1930. It is a lesson in mass manipulation by the media and big pharma. It is a lesson in treating people ultimately as mere resource rather than persons. And it is a lesson in extremes, extreme pain v. extreme pleasure and the wrongheadedness in submitting to either.
While it didn't affect my enjoyment of the book much, I just couldn't bring myself to believe in such a reality. Maybe I wasn't completely sold on the hypnopaedic idea of teaching people to like what they do. And the idea of idealized Alfa++ humanity being possible is even more ridiculous. The story about cyprus experiment reminded me of an older idea - all jobs, no matter how physical, dirty or menial are needed for society to work. It would be great if we could replace them with robots or other form of automation (see www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Pq-S557XQU for a nice overview). In the meantime I would like people to appreciate their waiters, cleaning ladies and other people "serving" them.
There were a lot of passages I marked in the book since it had a certain philosophical edge to it and I liked it very much (especially last two chapters). Topics of …
While it didn't affect my enjoyment of the book much, I just couldn't bring myself to believe in such a reality. Maybe I wasn't completely sold on the hypnopaedic idea of teaching people to like what they do. And the idea of idealized Alfa++ humanity being possible is even more ridiculous. The story about cyprus experiment reminded me of an older idea - all jobs, no matter how physical, dirty or menial are needed for society to work. It would be great if we could replace them with robots or other form of automation (see www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Pq-S557XQU for a nice overview). In the meantime I would like people to appreciate their waiters, cleaning ladies and other people "serving" them.
There were a lot of passages I marked in the book since it had a certain philosophical edge to it and I liked it very much (especially last two chapters). Topics of happiness, science and knowledge amd are the most important on my list to remember and ponder on after reading this book. I expect a later update of this text :-)
Really enjoyed this prediction of the future. You can't help but compare this to [b:1984|5470|1984|George Orwell|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348990566s/5470.jpg|153313] but they are very different. 1984 was a dark vision of the future, full of violence and down trodden people, Brave new world is pretty much the complete opposite no violence, everybody is happy and all things are great... in the words of the Lego Movie..." Everything is Awesome!"
That being so, this future is really sinister, in 1984 I felt I would have a chance to rebel, there were others who felt the same as you, but in brave new world you have no chance from when your first cell divides your future is being controlled and your future set. Ghastly stuff.
As for the writing itself, the book starts off with a tour of a facility and you are brought straight up-to-date with how the world is and how things are for …
Really enjoyed this prediction of the future. You can't help but compare this to [b:1984|5470|1984|George Orwell|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348990566s/5470.jpg|153313] but they are very different. 1984 was a dark vision of the future, full of violence and down trodden people, Brave new world is pretty much the complete opposite no violence, everybody is happy and all things are great... in the words of the Lego Movie..." Everything is Awesome!"
That being so, this future is really sinister, in 1984 I felt I would have a chance to rebel, there were others who felt the same as you, but in brave new world you have no chance from when your first cell divides your future is being controlled and your future set. Ghastly stuff.
As for the writing itself, the book starts off with a tour of a facility and you are brought straight up-to-date with how the world is and how things are for everybody. After that the story kicks off and you follow the life of Bernard, somebody who is not normal... somebody like you and me... who doesn't want to fit in.
A brilliant novel that I really enjoyed to read, looking forward to reading more by Aldous Huxley.
"Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley is often contrasted with "1984" by George Orwell as two types of twentieth-century dystopias. On the surface, they have many common themes: the complete control of society by those in power, the control of history and information, the destruction of the individual.
They are both horrifying but for radically different reasons. What makes "Brave New World" horrifying is that its shows a benevolent dystopia that, to use Huxley's introduction, makes men "love their servitude." The universe of "Brave New World" is one in which people have become infantile and made comfortable and contented through consumption, drugs, and genetic engineering. In my mind, "Brave New World" is more prescient about the trends we can see contemporary society than "1984" and makes the novel ultimately more troubling.
Reading the novel, I am struck by the intellectual rigor and depth with which Huxley approached his subject. I …
"Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley is often contrasted with "1984" by George Orwell as two types of twentieth-century dystopias. On the surface, they have many common themes: the complete control of society by those in power, the control of history and information, the destruction of the individual.
They are both horrifying but for radically different reasons. What makes "Brave New World" horrifying is that its shows a benevolent dystopia that, to use Huxley's introduction, makes men "love their servitude." The universe of "Brave New World" is one in which people have become infantile and made comfortable and contented through consumption, drugs, and genetic engineering. In my mind, "Brave New World" is more prescient about the trends we can see contemporary society than "1984" and makes the novel ultimately more troubling.
Reading the novel, I am struck by the intellectual rigor and depth with which Huxley approached his subject. I don't think the novel is particularly well-written but its ideas are so finely drawn that they come to the forefront. It is at once a parody of Utopian novels, a philosophical treatise on modernity, an exploration of religion and spirituality, and a damning critique of mass-consumerism.
Perhaps for a story written in the 1930's I should be a little more forgiving but this book had flashes of brilliance but those moments were too few and far between to make me really interested in it. When the story shifted to New Mexico I think my enthusiasm dropped and never recovered. In concept this was a strong story but the execution didn't appeal to me.
The book is over 80 years old and science fiction and dystopian works have come a long way, and perhaps without this book there wouldn't be others that I enjoy so much, but for me I think I will stick to the more modern works.
Un classique du roman d'anticipation. J'ai eu du mal à le lire : le style est assez lourd, les termes pseudo-scientifiques très nombreux et même si l'idée de départ est bonne, le récit lui-même ne m'a pas passionné. Je sais que ce roman est un classique, et j'ai peur d'être passé à côté de quelque chose de grand.
I read this one many years ago, when I was on my twenties, many people compare it with Orwell's 1984. I think the books does not accomplish the same thing: in one society, the one from this book, the purpose is to eradicate completely the purpose of human reproduction trough sex in order to achieve the "perfect being" and on the other, it's about mind control. By which I remember, there was not such a thing in the Brave New World's society, but you had castes just as in 1984, but there appears to be only one superior caste: the rulers. I think that 1984 have more strength, at least if left stronger mind marks than this one. Anyway, one thay I will reread this one.
I think that this is a book that inspires thought and discussion more than a good book. The characters get muddled together more than once making it occasionally difficult to figure out who is doing what.
The premise is good though and the topics it brings up are interesting, I just feel that it doesn't stand up well by itself.
Sorry for a candid review, but wow, this was definitely a crazy surprise for me.
I mean, I knew it was a 'classic', but I never expected SO MUCH to personally resonate with me and what I care about. I also think it's noteworthy to pay attention to the publication date of this book.. it's absolutely ridiculous in the resolution of its projection into the future technologies and its effect on humanity, considering what was even known or theoretical at the time.
The almost completely unspoken religious themes are brilliant, and not just a coy way to avoid angering the more sensitively devout.
If you are interested in reading this book, but still unsure if it's right for you, I would say the key themes of the book that resonate the most with me are religion, survival, history, media, and dystopian government.
Take the risk on this one, but skip …
Sorry for a candid review, but wow, this was definitely a crazy surprise for me.
I mean, I knew it was a 'classic', but I never expected SO MUCH to personally resonate with me and what I care about. I also think it's noteworthy to pay attention to the publication date of this book.. it's absolutely ridiculous in the resolution of its projection into the future technologies and its effect on humanity, considering what was even known or theoretical at the time.
The almost completely unspoken religious themes are brilliant, and not just a coy way to avoid angering the more sensitively devout.
If you are interested in reading this book, but still unsure if it's right for you, I would say the key themes of the book that resonate the most with me are religion, survival, history, media, and dystopian government.
Take the risk on this one, but skip any introduction your edition might have. It's been known to turn people off because Huxley apparently goes on about how prophetic his work was. (Which it totally was! But, I can understand how reading the intro before the work might leave you feeling like Huxley feels a bit to big for his britches.. which to be fair, may be an accurate depiction of the author so many years after writing this and seeing it come to pass)
I have never read this book, but was aware of it as a classic of science fiction and of English literature. It is an amazing work, especially considering the context (1932!). My previous education in political theory, philosophy and interwar history made me appreciate BNW on many different levels. I would have loved to study this book in a classroom environment. I feel like there is so much more in there. Thus, I am off to look for reviews and analyses to help me process the book.
A word about how I read this. I started with the audio version as narrated by Michael York. First of all, what a pick for a narrator! I mean, Logan's Run! And he does a brilliant performance. Unfortunately, I think the structure of sections in the book do not lend themselves to the audio format. So I got the eBook to read as …
I have never read this book, but was aware of it as a classic of science fiction and of English literature. It is an amazing work, especially considering the context (1932!). My previous education in political theory, philosophy and interwar history made me appreciate BNW on many different levels. I would have loved to study this book in a classroom environment. I feel like there is so much more in there. Thus, I am off to look for reviews and analyses to help me process the book.
A word about how I read this. I started with the audio version as narrated by Michael York. First of all, what a pick for a narrator! I mean, Logan's Run! And he does a brilliant performance. Unfortunately, I think the structure of sections in the book do not lend themselves to the audio format. So I got the eBook to read as well. I bounced between both.
It's about 20 years since I first read this book but I was surprised how much has stuck with me. Despite being almost 80 years old now it's still highly relevant, possibly more so than ever - I can't hear about someone taking Prozac or Xanax without thinking of soma. I've never been a huge fan of the book's ending, but its thoughtful look at society makes it well worth reading. I will have to reread this again in another 20 years and see how things compare then...
