How Is Love Presented In Brave New World

Many people assume that their perspective of the world, specifically about love, is that it is straightforward and simple, and that everyone gets a fairytale ending. However, that is not always the case, and usually never is. As seen in pieces like Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, and “When Love Arrives” by Sarah Kay & Phil Kaye, it shows that love is unpredictable, complex, and involves varying levels of emotion. Brave New World and “When Love Arrives” both display perspectives of love being erratic. “ ‘Do you know Bernard Marx?’ she asked… Fanny looked started. ‘You don’t mean to say…?’ ‘Why not? What do I care about his reputation?’ ” (Huxley). In the story, Lenina is shown to spend her time with lots of men, so when she brings up Bernard, …show more content…
“Love disappeared, slowly/Love vanished like an amateur magician/Everyone could see the trapdoor but me” (Kay & Kaye). Kay & Kaye reveal that there is no simple step by step guide to find love. They compare love to a hidden trapdoor, with no way of finding it yet having everyone else know where love went. It is evident that love has layers which are not always easy to understand. “Love is messier/Not as simple” (ibid). The poem further explains that love is not straightforward and clear, but complicated and chaotic. Brave New World also makes similar connections when Lenina is conversing with Fanny about how she is unsure of Bernard’s inconsistent feelings towards her, causing frustration and doubt of Lenina’s own thoughts (Huxley, 166). This exhibits that love causes dissatisfaction and stress. Unlike how most civilians of Brave New World will lounge around and “love” multiple people compared to just one, Bernard and Lenina face issues contrasting from the norm, dealing with feelings of separation versus the togetherness of their society. One could argue that if there was never any conflict or disagreements, that love would not be seen as something worth fighting for, as something worth less caring