Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Classic Literature/Science Fiction
Finished on 9/23/06
Rating: B+ (7/10 Good)
From Amazon.com:
"Community, Identity, Stability" is the motto of Aldous Huxley's utopian World State. Here everyone consumes daily grams of soma, to fight depression, babies are born in laboratories, and the most popular form of entertainment is a "Feelie," a movie that stimulates the senses of sight, hearing, and touch. Though there is no violence and everyone is provided for, Bernard Marx feels something is missing and senses his relationship with a young women has the potential to be much more than the confines of their existence allow. Huxley foreshadowed many of the practices and gadgets we take for granted today--let's hope the sterility and absence of individuality he predicted aren't yet to come.
Oh, this was so much better -- and so much more satisfyingly complex -- than Fahrenheit 451 and one I will look forward to re-reading. I found it quite thought-provoking, but I wish I had taken some notes. (It’s been over a week since I finished and I’ve read two other books in the meantime.) I’m finding it difficult to come up with anything intelligent to say about such a well-documented work of literature. I suspect many papers, theses, and dissertations have been written about Huxley’s masterpiece and I am feeling a bit intimidated to find anything noteworthy to mention. On the other hand, I’m getting that itch to go back to school and take some literature classes. I’d love to take one in which Fahrenheit 451, Brave New World and 1984 are discussed and analyzed. As George Eliot once said, “It’s never too late to be what you might have been.” I wonder how my hubby would feel about being married to a co-ed. ;)
Lesley, I always thought this book would be too difficult for me, but you loved it. I'm still too scared of it to read it. I can't believe the long list of classics you've read this month. Hope you're taking a moment to savor the accomplishment - ahhhhh....
ReplyDeleteLes,
ReplyDeleteThis sounds so good; you've convinced me I need to get around to reading Brave New World right away. I'm about to fall over from exhaustion, but I read all of the reviews you posted this weekend and enjoyed them. Please pardon me for the single comment.
Booklogged, I had the same concerns as you. For whatever reason, I thought this would be a very "intellectual" and dry read. It is very complex and can be read on many levels, but I didn't have any trouble getting interested or understanding it, for the most part. ;)
ReplyDeleteNancy, I think you'd enjoy this one. And please, no apologies for being tired and only a single comment. I truly sympathize with the lack of sleep thing you've got going!