"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.