The government is simply an intricate system used to control the people in a society. This is clearly evident in the novel Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley. This book is a dystopian novel that focuses on the direction the world is headed in. Set in the year 2540, Huxley predicts that technological advancements will be used to create a consumeristic, obedient, and ideal society of people with complete harmony. In his novel, Huxley warns of the dangers of a government who controls all aspects of people's life.
In Brave New World, the government, known as the controllers, control society through science, technology, and keeping people happy. The government controls everyone's social class. It does this through technological reproduction. The …show more content…
Through hypnopaedia, which is learning while sleeping, the government teaches people that when something is broken it is better to throw it away and buy a new one than to fix it. It does this by exposing infants to repetitive sayings while they are sleeping, like “Ending is better than mending. The more stitches, the less riches; the more stitches…” (Huxley 49). This subliminally controls people, making them buy new things and continue to spend money. The government also makes people continue to consume through conditioning. They condition young children to hate nature by shocking them in the presence of flowers, thus leading to people associating nature with pain. They also condition people to love sports that require a lot of athletic equipment and going out to nature. All this conditioning combined makes people obedient consumers of public transportation and market goods, while also preventing people from avoiding market goods by simply enjoying …show more content…
For example, prior to the novel, in the 1920’s the government tried to control people's drinking habits by outlawing alcohol. And when this did not work federal officials secretly poisoned industrial alcohol, which was frequently stolen by bootleggers. They thought this would scare people away from alcohol. However, that did not happen, and they simply ended up killing around 10,000 people (Blum). One can draw a parallel from prohibition to the government’s war on drugs. Though some drugs rightfully should be outlawed because the harm they do to people’s bodies. Others are illegal without any valid reason and lead to incarceration of people who are no danger to society. These laws prohibiting the use of drugs are simply another way the government controls how people act. This “war” began after the writing of the novel, and thus shows that the government did not heed Huxley’s warning. Furthermore, the government controls where people can live through its legislation, determining where infrastructure like transportation and cities will be built. These things are essentials for a Middle-Class American to survive in the modern society. Thus, since the government controls where these things are built, they also control where people can live. Other more recent laws that are used to control Americans are laws that allow the government to survey people’s
In Brave New World, the government, known as the controllers, control society through science, technology, and keeping people happy. The government controls everyone's social class. It does this through technological reproduction. The …show more content…
Through hypnopaedia, which is learning while sleeping, the government teaches people that when something is broken it is better to throw it away and buy a new one than to fix it. It does this by exposing infants to repetitive sayings while they are sleeping, like “Ending is better than mending. The more stitches, the less riches; the more stitches…” (Huxley 49). This subliminally controls people, making them buy new things and continue to spend money. The government also makes people continue to consume through conditioning. They condition young children to hate nature by shocking them in the presence of flowers, thus leading to people associating nature with pain. They also condition people to love sports that require a lot of athletic equipment and going out to nature. All this conditioning combined makes people obedient consumers of public transportation and market goods, while also preventing people from avoiding market goods by simply enjoying …show more content…
For example, prior to the novel, in the 1920’s the government tried to control people's drinking habits by outlawing alcohol. And when this did not work federal officials secretly poisoned industrial alcohol, which was frequently stolen by bootleggers. They thought this would scare people away from alcohol. However, that did not happen, and they simply ended up killing around 10,000 people (Blum). One can draw a parallel from prohibition to the government’s war on drugs. Though some drugs rightfully should be outlawed because the harm they do to people’s bodies. Others are illegal without any valid reason and lead to incarceration of people who are no danger to society. These laws prohibiting the use of drugs are simply another way the government controls how people act. This “war” began after the writing of the novel, and thus shows that the government did not heed Huxley’s warning. Furthermore, the government controls where people can live through its legislation, determining where infrastructure like transportation and cities will be built. These things are essentials for a Middle-Class American to survive in the modern society. Thus, since the government controls where these things are built, they also control where people can live. Other more recent laws that are used to control Americans are laws that allow the government to survey people’s