mackenzie's post # 2 SATIRE

The overall success of all societies which are governed by religious imperialsm, manipulation of the general population by those in power, and popular cultural practice (which is nearly all of them to some degree) depends on complete solidarity within its community. Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, a parody, demonstrates the reaction made by those in control when not all members of society fall in line with the predestined roles to which society has ascribed them.

When solidarity is tested by individuals whose views are contrary to those of the community’s, “The security and stability of Society are in danger” (149), says Huxley’s D.H.C. in condemning Bernard’s unwillingness to conform. Bernard’s so-called “indecencies” committed against society, as recited by the Director, include “his heretical views on sport and soma, the scandalous unorthodoxy of his sexlife, [and] his refusal to obey the teachings of Our Ford” (149). Huxley’s character, Bernard, single handedly destroys that which society has traditionally held sacred in his comment on the role of those who hold power as suppressers of inherent individual liberties. The D.H.C. regards such expressions of free will as “indecencies,” “heretical,” and “scandalous.”

In terms of the way of life which governs Huxley’s dystopian society, an independent thinker cannot exist. Such an individual would inevitably take on the label of “outcast” in any single, uniform society. Furthermore, the Director goes on to conclude that Bernard, as such a person, may be considered “an enemy of Society, a subverter of all Order and Stability, a conspirator against Civilization itself” (149). Such a strong, seemingly irrational reaction causes the reader to wonder whether or not these cultural values which they can observe in their own lives are really what would be best for not only themselves, but also society as a whole.