Well, Brave New World seems to have all of the wonderful qualities of a haunting new social order book. We see the meeting of certain extremes, and the results of such reactions can be violent. Like adding too much acid to a base, or something along that order. I should've paid more attention in chemistry. We see many polar opposites as thematic qualities in this novel: decadance against struggle, knowing too much against knowing nothing at all, ignorance, and information. It reminded me much of the classic philosophical question of whether one would be a happy fool or a tortured wiseman. The question here, of whether to be doped up on Soma for all existence or to be horrified at the condition of the world as The Savage seems too much to bear.

Shakespeare served as a rather interesting motif through the novel - it seems that Huxley used him less as a symbol of what the truest quality of literature is, and more as a vehicle. We're able to relate certain plot points and association through Othello, or Hamlet, or Romeo & Juliet, etc. In a sense, the novel ends like Hamlet - everyone's in a much worse place than when they began (arguably). Or at the least, disturbingly different. We could consider that perhaps this is what Huxley meant by using Shakespeare after all - his works truly encompass what is the human motivation and drive to existence.

So to follow up a question from this blog: I don't see why the people in the community cannot be considered humans. The reason we have no desire, or even inkling of liking for the poor creatures is because of their extreme ignorance. We like to think we are always informed, and we like staying within the know. Doesn't it feel a bit alarming to be the last person to know something's happened? We don't have the option to simply medicate ourselves into the ground whenever we're feeling bad, because we're somehow above that. Which isn't to say we aren't capable of it.

And so we come back again to the question of the end of the world: will we struggle against cruel, or surprisingly accomodating oppressors? I don't know what the best response to the old philosophical conundrum is, but I do know that there are some days I'd rather just take some soma and forget about it all.