The Secret Pupil: Brave New World Rection

No one understands. Even I had trouble getting it at first, but it is essential that you understand. Science and religion can both be extremely tempting, and if the average person thinks about them too much, he can be easily be sucked into their traps. As we go through these lessons, you have to remember that I am giving you knowledge, but you must not try to pursue science or religion any further. The happiness of our Society is far more important than anything we could discover with science or feel with religion. As a World Controller, it is my job to preserve everyone’s happiness, and one day it will be your job, so listen up.

Science and self-denial have always failed us. Look at Shakespeare. In fact, look at all of the major people of the past, before the time of our Ford: Jesus, Gandhi, Einstein… They were all brilliant and revered, but at what cost? Jesus was persecuted and left for dead. He was forced to face immense suffering on the cross, all to help end the rest of the world’s suffering. But people still suffered, they still faced hardships every day. Soma is a much better fix. All the happiness and no tears. Or consider Gandhi. He forced himself to be completely peaceful and celibate, suppressing so much of his nature. What a backwards way of thinking! Why would we have these urges if we weren’t supposed to act on them? Our current system is much better: everyone belongs to everyone; nothing is suppressed so everyone’s happy and fulfilled. Einstein is the best example of the flaws of science. Such brilliance, he helped bring so many inventions and innovations into the world, but science is ultimately dangerous. Once people learn a little about the world, they become ravenous for more and more information, which in the end leads to unhappiness. In short, truth is a menace to society (Huxley 204).

Now you can see why John killed himself. He was obsessed with religion, self-denial, and the search for more truth, all of which drove him mad. I don’t blame him for taking his own life, I knew that was his inevitable end as soon as he came into our “brave new world,” as he liked to call it. John was born into chaos. That’s all he knew and all he was destined for. He was never conditioned to be happy, never taught the benefits of soma.

In the past, people would have regarded such actions as sad, but now we know better. His death, as all others’, is an inevitable part of life. You’re a little young to completely understand the joy in his death, though, so let’s take some soma and then we can resume our lesson.

***

Okay, so now we’re in the Fertilization Room. “These…are the incubators” (Huxley 16). As you know, this is where humans are made. Do you remember how many identical twins we can make now through bokavskification? That’s right, sixteen thousand and twelve! Individuality can be useful in some cases, as is with the Alphas, but in most cases uniformity yields the most happiness. We are all one Society, and uniformity helps us achieve our collective goals with the least amount of conflict. It is no coincidence that the people who are exiled to the island are all Alphas, nor was it an accident that the island of entirely Alphas broke into a civil war. When people are different, it can become very dangerous. That is why we manage who is the same, who is different, and how they are different; and that is why the job of the World Controller is so important.

One day, when you are older you will take my place as a World Controller. You will get to make the decisions about how our Society will work. You must not take your responsibility lightly, though, for you will be in charge of the happiness of the entire Society, which is why these extra lessons are so important. You must be aware of science and religion and knowledgeable about their dangers so that you will not be tempted by them. But you have a few years before you have to worry too much about this, so for now, go join your friends in Centrifugal Bumble-puppy.

Okay fath-I mean Mustapha!

Works Cited: Huxley, Aldous. Brave New World. New York: Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1932. Print. 

Frankenstein Reaction

Frankenstein is in the genre of Gothic literature because Shelley uses elements of that genre to criticize both romanticism and rationalism. Shelley shows favoritism to romanticism, though, which can be seen in her characters’ strong admiration for nature. Victor, for example, spends a whole day wandering through the mountains after William and Justine’s deaths. He describes his beautiful surroundings in detail, exclaiming “the sublime and magnificent scenes afforded me the greatest consolation that I was capable of receiving” (Shelley 101). Descriptions like this one pepper the novel and illustrate Shelley’s romanticism, especially in her fondness of nature.

Continuing her praise of nature and its peacefulness, Shelley criticizes rationalism and science through her novel. Victor Frankenstein, a chemist and pupil of the natural sciences, clearly represents rationalism. Rational thought, especially in the context of the enlightenment, focused intensely on the abandonment of emotional thought and motivation, in favor of a way of thinking that was clearer, more concise, and based in fact. Shelley points out that this new way of thinking is flawed through Victor Frankenstein’s insanity in his work. Frankenstein himself even admits as he’s recounting the story that he got a little too obsessed with creating his being. In fact, he got so consumed with the small details of his work that he failed to recognize the bigger picture of what he was creating. Thus, Frankenstein was shocked and horrified at the creature that he alone spent night and day working on for months. He could not really see the monster because he was looking at it through his rational and scientific “lenses,” if you will. However, when life was breathed into the Creature, Frankenstein viewed his creation with emotion and saw a repulsive being. In his surprise, Frankenstein panicked and fled, leaving the confused monster to fend for itself. Through this series of events, Shelley points out that emotions are necessary to see the full picture, yet are also flawed and should not be the only tools used to make decisions.

The Creature’s representation, on the other hand, is not as clear. He is an unnatural creation, an artificial being that Frankenstein created in his rational defiance of the laws of nature. However, the Creature himself, as his own being, represents romanticism. The Creature is completely controlled by his emotions, acting on whatever anger or sadness he is feeling at the moment. Give in text example of him changing his mind twice after the family freaks out at him.

Overall, Frankenstein resonates with every reader because it calls into question the everlasting nature vs. nurture debate. Whether you are someone controlled by your emotions, or someone who meticulously and rationally thinks through your actions, we all wonder whether people are naturally evil or if they are corrupted by human experience. Should we blame the Creature for killing all of Frankenstein’s family, or should we blame Frankenstein for creating the Creature in the first place? The answer all depends on your perspective.

Works Cited

Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein. New York: The Penguin Group, 2013. Print.