Two Different Locations in Brave New World
The essay compares London and New Mexico in Brave New World. It argues that setting shapes how characters see their society. Color imagery marks the contrast between the two places. Grey buildings in London show suppressed emotions like loneliness. The green landscape in New Mexico reflects raw, unrestrained feelings like pain and possessiveness. The author points out that both societies still share hidden cruelty. London conditions babies through electric shocks to teach lessons early. New Mexico practices a whipping ritual meant to bring rain and good harvests. Both acts demand personal suffering for the good of the group. The essay concludes that these shared cruelties raise doubts about which society truly offers a better path for the characters.
The main characters’ thoughts and feelings about their society are both reinforced and swayed by the different environments they inhabit. The distinctions between the two terrains are vast, yet they still have some similarities. For example, in London, a building was described as “A squat grey building of only thirty-four stories.” (Huxley, pg 5), as compared to the scenery in New Mexico, described as “The channel wound between precipitous banks, and slanting from one wall to the other across the valley ran a streak of green - the river and its fields.
” (Huxley, pg 73). The difference in color in each climate can symbolize the presence or absence of emotion in each society. The grey in London represents the suppression of emotions like loneliness and non-fulfillment. In contrast, the color in New Mexico suggests emotions unrestrained, including negative feelings such as possessiveness and pain.
While the two societies have glaring differences, they also share hidden similarities. Both societies commit acts most people would consider cruel. In London, the book describes a scene where babies are electrocuted to serve as a lesson. The book states, “He waved his hand again, and the Head Nurse pressed a second lever. The screaming of the babies suddenly changed its tone. There was something desperate, almost insane, about the sharp spasmodic yelps to which they now gave utterance. Their little bodies twitched and stiffened; their limbs moved jerkily as if to the tug of unseen wires.” (Huxley, pg 16). Similarly, in New Mexico, society performs a pain-inflicting ritual. The book describes, "But the whip fell and fell inexorably. Seven times round. Then all at once the boy staggered and, still without a sound, pitched forward onto his face. Bending over him, the old man touched his back with a long white feather, held it up for a moment, crimson, for the people to see then shook it thrice over the snakes." (Huxley, pg 78). Both societies require personal sacrifice for the benefit of the rest. In London, electrocuting the babies supposedly leads to future financial gains. In New Mexico, whipping a man is believed to invoke rain and grow more food in the village.
In conclusion, despite the stark differences between the two societies, their similarities make one question which path is better for the characters to follow.
Two Different Locations in Brave New World. (2022, Aug 27). Retrieved from https://hub.papersowl.com/examples/two-different-locations-in-brave-new-world/
