Brave New World (1932) - Aldous Huxley

“I don't want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness. I want sin."

In the course of a person's life, there usually comes a time where you encounter things that move you. They may touch your soul in an emotive way - maybe you're reminded of a gentle summer's day frolicking in a hazy strawberry field as a wee bairn, maybe you're reminded of what it means to be human and all that comes with it. Who knows? However, sometimes you find yourself stumbling on something that moves you in a different way. Sometimes you come across a work so prophetic that you wonder if it's creator was in fact some sort of time-traveling space alien who went to the future, jotted down their findings and returned to present day to cash in.

So it goes for Aldous Huxley's haunting masterpiece 'Brave New World'.

The story exists in a utopian future wherein the humans of planet earth, or, more specifically in this case, Huxley's native England, are essentially enslaved to a life defined by rigidity, conformity and performance of essential functions. Individualism isn't necessarily outlawed - as it is in George Orwell's equally towering '1984' - but it's safe to say that it certainly isn't encouraged. The citizens of this world go about their business with placid joy, without a question in their minds, love in their hearts, or a qualm about their state of being. And if a pang should ever take hold, they have a daily dose of 'soma' to soothe their anxieties. Sound familiar? Don't worry, it only gets more alarming from there.

This is a world where babies are emotionally manipulated from a young age, all behaviours are conditioned and people are put into a class system as determined by a totalitarian government who have long since forgone the idea of free will in favour of the greater societal good. No one objects and everyone is happy. It is, for want of a better phrase, a brave new world. However, the world alone would not make for much of a story. It needs someone to be at odds with it, and things soon start to pull apart through the perspective of two lead characters - Bernard Marx and a 'savage' known only as John. One works for the government he begins to despise, the other lives on a reserve for people who aren't successfully indoctrinated into modern society. Through these two people's points of view, we begin to see this new world in an increasingly different, and mildly terrifying, light.

"A love of nature keeps no factories busy."

It's not really adequate to judge this book in terms of plot. Yes the story is compelling, but what makes it so are the existential questions which arise at each turn. Speaking of which, it is impossible to ignore the experience of reading this book in 2026. As mentioned earlier, it is like Aldous Huxley traveled through time and space itself, saw how we live our lives today, and went back to 1932 to publish his findings. The citizens of Huxley's world revel in their complete lack of thought, originality and depth. Everything is made staggeringly easy for them to have a life completely un-lived. As a result, they are peaceful, docile and existing in a state of vapid, blissful, ignorance. They sleep with whoever they want. They don't have families. They don't experience love. They have no questions about the nature of their existence because they are fed, watered and entertained. And when all else fails, they take drugs to help numb any unwanted thoughts or feelings. I'll say it again....SOUND FAMILIAR?!

As a result, reading this book is a fascinating, if deeply unsettling, experience and poses more questions about sentiency than perhaps we are equipped to handle. Indeed, it has been banned many times in the span of it's life and you can see why. The questions it poses are so far-reaching and profound that I found myself just sat staring into oblivion upon finishing the last page. And what is even more disconcerting is that you can see the argument for both sides. It satirises socialism and capitalism, liberal and conservatism, freedom and conformity, all in one fell swoop. Are our feelings and loves and losses any good for us? Is that what it means to be human? Or would it just be easier for all involved if we titillate ourselves through it all, not experiencing any level of higher purpose and being essentially a cog in a much larger wheel? Is there value in a pre-determined class system? If everyone is 'happy', then do we really need anything else? My head hurts just thinking about it all and I'm sure yours does too so let's surmise accordingly.

“‘What you need is a gramme of soma.’ ‘All the advantages of Christianity and alcohol; none of their defects. Take a holiday from reality whenever you like, and come back without so much as a headache or a mythology."

This book is an astonishing piece of work. The fact it was written in 1932 is almost unfathomable, so relevant is it to our daily lives, and if you replace the word 'Soma' with 'Scrolling' then it could reasonably be argued that we are living a version of this book as we speak. If you read 'Brave New World' and go anywhere in modern society, you'd be hard pressed not to find at least some glaring similarities. Is Huxley a time-traveler? Should this book just be banished to the memories of yesterday, or is it essential reading for all of us in the internet age? Regardless of where the moral argument lands on these thoughts, it is one of those works which leaves you changed after encountering. Some things move you. Some things make you laugh. Some things make you cry. Some things leave you staring at an overgrown bush in your garden for about four hours wondering what on earth to make of it all. Either way, the power of this novel is undeniable and, as such, will remain in the highest regard until it is burned and it's existence deleted from any official record.

★★★★★

JB.