Lenina Rebellion In Brave New World

When we consider the conformity and individuality of the female characters, it could be argued that Julia actively and willingly rebels, whereas Lenina is an unintentional non-conformist, though neither character’s rebellion deliberately and selflessly challenges conventions . In ‘Brave New World’, to conform to convention is to be promiscuous, whereas in ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’ to conform is to be chaste, so for Lenina and Julia rebellion takes a somewhat different form . Female sexual promiscuity is encouraged in the World State to suppress strong emotional bonds created by monogamous relationships which threaten society’s stability. An interesting interpretation by Jenni Calder is that ‘Lenina is not a serious non-conformist. Her role has less importance than Julia’s. …show more content…
This idea that Julia is only defiant sexually implies she acts purely out of self-satisfaction rather than a conscious resistance to society’s conventions. Under a feminist reading, the portrayal of Julia’s resistance as non-intellectual and Lenina’s as superficial could be interpreted as undermining women and thus misogynistic, resulting from the texts being products of the patriarchal societies of the early twentieth century. Therefore, while Calder’s judgement that Lenina is not ‘a serious non-conformist’ is credible in terms of Lenina’s unintentional rebellion, her role in terms of the conflict between individuality and conformity is no less important than Julia’s, as it could be said that Julia is similar in that her non-conformity is not serious; she places hedonism over intellectual resistance.
The conflict between individuality and conformity is presented in the endings of ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’ and ‘Brave New World’ by Orwell and Huxley through the portrayal of the final imposition of conformity on the protagonists. In ‘Brave New World’, John the Savage’s rebellion against society is disturbed when