Brave New World - Aldous Huxley

Sometimes I think that, for someone with an A level in English literature, I'm not very well read. Unfortunately I spent a lot of my time reading politics and philosophy books, so rarely get round to reading fiction for leisure. We did do Orwell's Animal Farm for GCSE and Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale in Sixth Form but, despite their relevance to someone studying political ideas, the likes of 1984 and Brave New World had sat too long on my Amazon wishlist. This summer, I decided to try to put that right. Perhaps part of the reason for my delay was the feeling already familiar with the societies described in each, though it occurred to me I was almost ...  Read the complete review

The term ?Dystopia? has evolved as a synonym for anti-Utopia; a Utopia referring to a theoretical ?perfect society? often portrayed in the science fiction genre. The novels Brave New World, (Aldous Huxley) We (Yevgeny Zamyatin) and Nineteen Eighty-Four (George Orwell) pioneered this sub-genre of a futuristic society that appears Utopian in principle but in which a totalitarian government controls the population, whose freedom and thoughts are inhibited. A Dystopia novel explores the author?s nightmare vision of a possible future, in the event of aspects of contemporary society becoming ...  Read the complete review

It is a rare occasion when a novel goes beyond the restraints of the science fiction genre. Often these boundaries consist of monsters or the monotonous presence of aliens; it was only when I read the fantastic new novel by Aldous Huxley that I truly appreciated what the genre of science fiction had to offer. Brave New World, rather than offering the token mythological tale of aliens or extraordinary beings, takes a realistic look at science fiction and poses the daunting question, what if? The genius of Aldous Huxley lies with in the actual storyline of Brave New World. Aldous Huxley not only examines the social structures in society today, but he then ...  Read the complete review

‘Brave New World’ is, in my opinion, the finest work of one of the finest authors of the century. The best thing about the book is that it makes you think. Not just that, of course, a lot of books challenge the intellect and imagination (every other book Huxley’s written, for a start), but ‘Brave New World’ not only makes you think, it also points you at the truth, by showing you what lies in the other direction. Only a very few works of the imagination are strong enough to do this, to fit an imperative moral message into a fictional narrative. The fact that it’s also very funny is just the icing on the cake. The book is a ...  Read the complete review

Written in 1932, this novel by Englishman Aldous Huxley is a true classic. It is in turn amusing, horrifying and grim. In Brave New World Huxley tells of a society in which humans are graded from Alpha-plus (highest ) to Epsilon-minus (lowest) and brought up by means of sleep-teaching from a very young age to accept their social destiny as fact. The Alphas are bred to be highly intelligent and skilled, the Epsilons are bred to be manual workers. All live together in a world of genetic modification and apparent social harmony. Uninhibited sex is considered universally constructive and positively encouraged, however, the concept of love and lasting relationships leading ...  Read the complete review