Aldous Huxley s Brave New World - 1517 Words

The characters in Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World live in a society where they are trained from childhood to be the ideal, rule following, abide by their class citizens. They are taught that happiness comes from a stable society where people are born into one of five classes and taught during embryonic development what their life-long jobs will be. Brave New World illustrates a future where people live like robots, are discouraged from feeling anything but happiness, and told to shield their emotions from others. They have no families, no parents, and no relationships. The leaders of the World State ensure that every citizen knows his or her place in society; one mistake can lead to exile. Unlike today’s society, those in the World State†¦show more content†¦Four months with Henry Foster- why, he’d be furious if he knew†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Huxley 40-41). Lenina’s unconventional behavior adds to her appeal as a character. She enjoys Foster’s comp any and sees no reason why she must engage in purely sexual encounters with multiple men. Lenina does not get in trouble for breaking the rules, but she does change her behavior after speaking with Fanny. Lenina moves on to Bernard Marx. Lenina is appalled when Bernard does not want to sleep with her the first chance he gets. He hates the idea of taking soma and would rather be cranky than escape reality. Lenina and Bernard do have sex, but she never gets him to abandon his quirks and become an ideal citizen. Lenina begins as a misfit; however, she sees the error in her ways and ultimately turns into a strict rule-follower. She continues to repeat the phrases that were drilled into her memory as a child. Bernard resents Lenina for conforming to mainstream. Neither of them understands the other’s behavior- Lenina follows the rules and Bernard never stops breaking them. Lenina starts off breaking the rules of her society but quickly turns into a model citizen, unlike Bernard an d John. The three of them never cease to wonder why the rules are what they