Two opposing societies, one of luxury with severe conditioning and conformity, and another of freedom with ferocity and sacrifice, coexist in the modern era. In the dystopian novel Brave New World, author Aldous Huxley juxtaposes these two different worlds through his character John who travels from his home in the Wilderness to the World State, where he soon jeopardizes the supposed sanctity of local society. Although the World State appears to be the most civilized and desirable society, the Reservation instead protects the purest ideals of humanity through the virtue and passion of the savages who inhabit it. To achieve true happiness and fulfillment in life, one must embrace these humanistic ideals which include the capacity for knowledge, genuineness and individuality, provided that the ability to do so is permitted by the form of government and society in which they reside. no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay First and foremost, acquiring knowledge is one of the key factors needed to achieve true happiness in society. For example, John reminds Bernard of his life on the Reservation by explaining how "gaining skill and power" gave him "extraordinary pleasure" and "intense and engaging happiness" (134). Evidently, the work and effort required to master a certain skill and learn a certain trade are immensely important to John. He unabashedly admits that gaining various skills and knowledge as he learns more about aspects of life significantly adds to the true fulfillment and happiness he experiences in life. In another instance, Mustapha Mond admits, while examining an academic article, that “the purpose of life [is] not the maintenance of well-being” as in the World State, but “the enlargement of knowledge” (Huxley 177). As one of the world controllers of dystopia, Mond should be one of the world state's most pro-society advocates. However, this is not entirely the case. Mond does not personally believe in the same ideals he is supposed to enforce; instead, he believes in the same basic ideals as the Reserve, which include the pursuit of knowledge. He himself states that the true meaning and purpose of life is to seek knowledge and wisdom, not the mindless conformity of the mass of society. The pursuit and thirst for knowledge and wisdom in life is clearly a crucial component to the pursuit of true happiness and realized value. Furthermore, genuineness is equally necessary for happiness, since without it the very sense of happiness is unreal and therefore false. As Mustapha Mond speaks to students at the Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Center about the society of the past, he metaphorically refers to the religion of the past as “Heaven,” where people “drank enormous quantities of alcohol” (53). In this passage, Mond discusses the previous civilization with disdain because people were supposedly so dissatisfied with their lives and faith that they turned to excessive drinking to cope. However, the World State is exactly the same scenario as the previous society, if not even worse. The passage actually serves as a metaphor not only for Mond to explain the past world to the students in the novel proper, but also as a metaphor for Huxley to indicate to readers that the utopia, the "heaven," he created through his writing generates the same dissatisfaction as in the past, but instead of excessive alcohol, there is excessive use of drugs with soma. Additionally, Bernard and Lenina witness a strange ritual in which a young man is whipped by another tribesman in the Savage Reservation. Subsequently, John admits them in.
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