Glossary of Terms Used in the Novel
Bokanovsky's Process (Bokanovskification): method of treating an egg with X-rays and alcohol to produce up to 96
identical twins.
Bottling: process of putting artificially-created embryos into bottles on an assembly line to facilitate treatment.
Caste: social group to which a person belongs. The castes are named after the Greek letters Alpha, Beta, Gamma,
Delta, and Epsilon. These castes are differentiated by intelligence (the result of adding alcohol in different amounts to
the embryos), their function in society, and their clothing. However, conditioning makes each person satisfied with their
particular caste so that no conflicts arise from die differences.
Community Sing: simulated-religious celebration for large groups of people.
Conditioning: method of teaching behaviour patterns with the help of punishments (e.g. electric shocks) and rewards
(e.g. chocolate eclairs). Conditioning is complemented by hypnopaedia
Decanting: equivalent of natural birth (to decant. means to pour out of a bottle).
Ectogenesis: fertilization of the human egg and ripening of the embryo outside the female womb.
Emotional engineering: State propaganda (in the forms of movies, slogans, etc.) that keeps the population in harmony
with the State.
Feely: type of cinematic film, in which the audience also feels the action (for "feeling pictures", adapted from "talky",
i.e. "talking pictures").
Ford, Henry (1863-1947): American car producer and the idol of the World State (which refers to him as 'Our Ford')
Freemartin: woman who was sterilized as an embryo, as eggs are not needed from every woman.
Games: leisure activities such as Centrifugal Bumble-Puppy, Electromagnetic Golf, Escalator Squash, Obstacle Golf,
Riemann-Surface Tennis, whose purpose is to entertain the masses with activities that keep production going due to the
need for equipment.
Hatchery: the building in which people are created, formed and born.
Hypnopaedia: sleep-teaching of moral values by endless repetitions during childhood. As a part of life-long
conditioning, hypnopaedia is one of the basic control techniques of the World State.
Hypnopaedic slogans: phrases that are played to the citizens in their sleep as they grow up. Here is a list of some of the
slogans:
Never put off till tomorrow the fun you can have today.
When the individual feels, the Community reels.
Everyone belongs to everyone eise.
Ending is better than mending.
The more stitches the less riches.
Cleanliness is next to fondliness.
Civilization is sterilization.
Everybody's happy now.
A doctor a day keeps the jim-jams away. Relating to soma
A gramme in time saves nine.
Was and will make me ill. I take a gramme and only am.
One cubic centimeter eures ten gloomy sentiments.
A gramme is always better than a damn.
Malthusian Drill: training to prevent unsterilized women from becoming pregnant; named after the British
economist Thomas Malthus (1766-1834) who warned of the fatal effects of overpopulation.
Nine Years' War: Turning point in history in A.F. 141 when a dirty war with anthrax bombs and infected water
supplies (a reference to World War I) caused countless casualties and the great Economical Collapse (suggesting the
World Economic Crisis of 1929). As the only alternative to complete destruction, the World State was established.
Podsnap'sTechnique: Process of accelerating the ripening of eggs so that the number of offspring from one ovary can
be increased considerably.
Predestination: the formation of the individual embryo for its future in society.
Pregnancy Substitute: treatment that stabilizes women emotionally so that they can enjoy a promiscuous sex-life.
Reservation: area in New Mexico where Indians still live in traditional Systems. It is surrounded by an electric fence
that prevents escape, while access from outside requires a special permit. In the novel the Reservation serves as a
contrast to the modern world.
Solidarity Service: pseudo-religious ceremony culminating in the ecstatic unification of the 'orgy-porgy'; a parody of
Christian Services.
Soma: euphoric drug without side-effects that is taken whenever people want to cheer themselves up ('All the
advantages of Christianity and alcohol; none of their defects'; p.48, 1.3). The consumption of soma guarantees the
emotional stability of the individual and hence of society.
T: the equivalent of the Christian cross, named after Henry Ford's popular car the T-Model.
Violent Passion Surrogate (VPS): treatment in which the body is regularly flooded with adrenalin, replacing strong
emotions like rage and fear without their unpleasant consequences.
World State: this is the only name (apart from 'civilized place') which is used for the society depicted in Brave New
World.