Brave New World And Blade Runner

Module A - Comparative study

Defining 'The Natural World'

* A state of being not modified, civilised or cultured by humans.

* This applies to the external environment as well as the internal state of being (human nature)

* In certain cases being natural is desirable, as they are not forced to bottle up their natural feelings. The conventional view taken is that these feelings include love and empathy that are 'natural' to human beings.

* Huxley's quasi Freudian model:

 Regards human behaviour as natural if they are instinctual, closer to animalistic behaviour. The power of reasoning and abstract thought takes them from being animals into developing 'higher' feelings (love, empathy).

 When they are driven to their natural state of being people become barbaric and uncivilised not controlling their emotions and expecting to be gratified at every whim. This leads to behaviour that is intinctual and not motivated by adult reasoning. Mond:'adults at work but infants when it comes to emotions'.

 Feelings of love and empathy are attributed to the 'soul' something that animals lack.

 Therefore being in this view 'human' is not natural.

The World State Society of Brave New World

* Labour becoming hyper-specialised: In advanced societies with labour becoming hyper-specialised. People do not see the effect of their labours no realise the significance of it.

* Death is nothing because no one cares for individuality or has any emotional ties, "fine to think we can go on being socially useful even after we're dead" (page 67)

* What is valued in the World State however is:

 Comfort: physical and emotional comfort, "illness or wounds was to him not only horrifying, but even repulsive and rather disgusting. Like dirt, or deformity, or old age" (page 115)

 Happiness: limited kind of happiness - not what we call happy

* Consumption: even the simplest of sports have numerous and expensive amounts of equipment

 Stability: "No civilisation without social stability. No social stability without individual stability" (page 44) which means no:

1. religion

2. sense of purpose

3. art

4. real science

5. change

6. curiosity

7. nothing unpleasant

8. suffering

9. struggle

* The purpose of life in the World State is the "maintenance of well-being" (page 144). Society no longer has a purpose as stability is achieved.

* As the book progresses, John is called "The Savage" because he is representing a culture and isn't an individual

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