An Introduction to the
Novel by Aldous Huxley:
BRAVE NEW WORLD
BRAVE NEW WORLD INTRODUCTION:
What
does the word, “individuality”
mean to you?
How important is it to be an
individual in society?
Does modern society
make it easy to be an
individual? Why or why not?
BRAVE NEW WORLD BY ALDOUS HUXLEY
Born: in England on July 26, 1894
 English novelist and critic, best known for his
novel Brave New World (1931). Besides novels
he published travel books, histories, poems,
plays, and essays on philosophy, arts,
sociology, religion and morals.
 Died: November 22, 1963

BRAVE NEW WORLD
The book is set in London in AD 2540 (632 A.F. in the book).
The novel anticipates developments in reproductive technology and sleeplearning that combine to change society.
The vast majority of the population is unified under the World State, an eternally
peaceful, stable global society in which goods and resources are plentiful
(because the population is permanently limited to no more than two billion
people) and everyone is happy.
Natural reproduction has been done away with and children are created,
'decanted' and raised in Hatcheries and Conditioning Centres, where they are
divided into five castes and designed to fulfill predetermined positions within the
social and economic strata of the World State.
BRAVE NEW WORLD

To maintain the World State's Command Economy for the indefinite future,
all citizens are conditioned from birth to value consumption with such
platitudes as "ending is better than mending," i.e., buy a new item instead of
fixing the old one, because constant consumption, and near-universal
employment to meet society's material demands, is the bedrock of
economic and social stability for the World State.

Spending time alone is considered an outrageous waste of time and money,
and wanting to be an individual is horrifying.

In the World State, people typically die at age 60 having maintained good
health and youthfulness their whole life. Death isn't feared; anyone
reflecting upon it is reassured by the knowledge that everyone is happy, and
that society goes on. Since no one has family, they have no ties to mourn.
BRAVE NEW WORLD

The conditioning system eliminates the need for professional
competitiveness; people are literally bred to do their jobs and cannot desire
another. There is no competition within castes; each caste member receives
the same food, housing, and soma rationing as every other member of that
caste.