Brave New World – In Class Essay Assignment (Friday 5/29)
Your assignment is to create a thesis statement (argument) regarding Aldous Huxley’s
novel. You are to choose your own topic, but make sure that the topic is something about
which you are passionate. The goal of this assignment is to create an argument that says
something novel, fresh, and insightful about this well-worn classic. Use your notes on the
novel as a guide, and choose a topic that speaks to you as an individual. Remember, the
more excited you are about writing your essay, the more exciting your paper will be to
read; nobody wants to read a paper that is simply regurgitating or rehashing someone
else’s ideas. Take a risk!
Mechanics: Write a 2-3 page essay in class essay in which you develop an argument
utilizing ample support from the text. Do not summarize or write a book report about the
novel, but rather choose a single idea, motif, theme, image, symbol, implication, etc. to
explore at length. You will be graded in a holistic manner focusing on the development of
your thesis, the quality and the appropriateness of the textual evidence, the quality of
your commentary, the quality of your writing style, and your organization and mechanics.
Possible Motifs and Topics to Explore:
The Usefulness of Technological Advancements
Escapism as a Means of Dealing with Reality
Stunting of Intellectual and Scientific Exploration
Entertainment of the Future
The Extinction of Monogamy
Sex Reduced to Physical Pleasure or Release
Reproductive Control
The Existence of a Free Will
Psychological Conditioning and Subliminal Messaging
Avoidance of Truth and Self-knowledge
Happiness versus Reality / Truth
Avoidance of Human Emotion, Desire, and Death
Death of the Family Unit
Control of the Masses
Henry Ford as a Technological God
Outsiders / Alienation / Loneliness
Shakespeare versus Technology
Extinction of Religion
Drugs as a way to Avoid Reality
Social Stability
Community and Identity
Dystopia
Eugenics