How did the Society in Brave New World come to be? (Ahmad)
Brave New World was an interesting look into a “futuristic” dystopian world in which nothing was left to chance. Everything had been predetermined by the alphas of the society, ridding the world of feelings and spontaneity, ensuring the uninterrupted flow of tasks without distraction. The approach they took, however, is what struck me as bizarre. Having gained inspiration from Henry Ford, these people above the rest of society developed a system of automated reproduction via industrial means, that took the responsibilities of the person being “manufactured” into account. Instead of allowing everyone an equal chance to succeed and prosper, some were made intentionally worse than others; in terms of looks, intelligence, and more. The alphas created castes and trained everyone made after the New World State was established from birth until the time of maturity at which they could work. Knowing the society would not be able to maintain itself in the way it was designed to, by result of human nature itself, the government also provides its people soma, a drug responsible for numbing a person’s feelings and memories, keeping them from going too far outside of what they were meant to do. From this, the foundation around which the story was built, a question arises: What was the point of this society? As we have already covered how pointless the story within the book was, considering it had no significant impact on anything, I decided to ponder how the society that appears will go unchanged forever even came about. How did the New World State arise from the ideals of a man like Henry Ford, who innovated and invented new things that pushed humanity forward, at least in our reality, tenfold.
Henry Ford is a man who made one of the biggest impacts on civilization as a whole. By mass producing cars, he made such a valuable and practical form of transportation available for the masses, allowing us to grow in ways that may have been impossible prior. While this innovation was a huge success. It could be argued the tactics he employed within his factories were just as large a contribution, except to industry. Ford was the one who popularized the assembly line, something that contributed largely to the roaring 20’s. It allowed companies to break down their manufacturing processes into many parts, having certain employees focus on only completing those parts that were assigned to them. With each employee only having to worry about one small task, they were able to master those tasks, and were then made to complete those tasks over and over. This process added up to complete making the whole product in question. Ultimately, instead of producing one big product at a time, many were being produced all at once. This allowed companies to become much more efficient, cranking out many more products in a set period of time than they would have been able to before. It is this contribution of Fords that the founders of the New World State probably focused on, as is seen in the factories that produce humans and the way life is structured. By making sure everything and everyone is focused on only what they have to do, it makes society run very efficiently. However, I believe innovation and drive to move humanity forward should have been prioritized as that is what the assembly line was made to accomplish in the first place. What do you guys think? Is this a good way to explain how the New World State may have been founded? Do you guys have any other ideas?
NOTE: I thought this blog post was due last Sunday, so I wrote it on Brave New World last week. If I would have known otherwise, this would have been on The Handmaids Tale.
First and foremost, I think that your question of, "what's the point?" is super valid and is something I've pondered in the back of my mind. It does seem rather awkward that such a stagnant society could be modeled after and basically dedicated to a man who was nothing but innovative and forward thinking. I'd like to think that the founders had benevolent intentions - perhaps they just became lost in their vision? Regardless, what troubles me the most is imagining how the society may have spiraled out of control and into the disturbing chaos we read in BNW. I wonder, who was involved in the downfall? Did anyone fight back? There are so many questions to be asked about the World State from its economy to its people... and that's both fun and frustrating to explore so open-ended! Great post!
ReplyDeleteI agree that the assembly line was an important contribution to this new world. As everything seems to be automated, without much human interference. And the question you raised "how did society in brave new world come to be", can be related to the assembly line. It seems that humans desired extreme efficiency as they believed that this would allow them to progress, however by becoming literal machines with the assembly line, they gave up freedom of thought and action in the process. I too believe that this is a mistake, and that innovation
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, what is the point of a society that doesn't strive for anything greater than stability? BNW is a society that eliminates the idea of risk and independence, characteristics which we associate with any meaningful society. However, couldn't people make the same argument about our society today? I understand the distinction between the two societies is that in one you can pursue your passions and interests while in the other your occupation and station in life is already predetermined. But, doesn't our capitalist society also exploit humans in the name of progress?
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting to think about how the World State arose from both the ideals of Henry Ford, and the increasingly industrial climate of the early 20th century, to the society we see in the book. Almost every single aspect of human civilization has changed, ultimately past the point of recognize-ability. Ultimately, I think the World State just uses the ideas of Ford to justify its authoritarian control.
ReplyDeleteI got the impression that the World State's obsession with stability comes from a period when there was none whatsoever. They talk about the 'anthrax bombs' and the destruction of major city after major city, and I think that the World State emerged out of a period of massive wars and terrorist attacks. I think they looked at that, looked at the efficiency of an assembly line, and said to themselves, 'what if we could make people like this?'.
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The New World Order worships Ford's teachings to the point that he is revered as a god. This can be seen when they exclaim "Oh my Ford" or "Thank Ford" instead of the traditional "Oh my God" or "Thank the Lord". If Ford is this entrenched in society, then it is plausible to assume they follow his ideals religiously. From the assembly line to the idea that everyone has their own role which contributes to the greater system, the New World Order finds a way to implement these aspects into their society.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Ford's innovation could have been a much better foundation for a new society as opposed to automation, and I think that Ford would have been more focused on the inventive aspect of his work as well. However, (if I'm remembering correctly) it wasn't Ford that truly created the World State, but other people that idealized the nature of the assembly line. The smooth functioning of manufacturing wouldn't actually be a terrible basis for a society (order is almost always valued, as long as it doesn't come with too many sacrifices), and innovation would be much looser and chaotic. With that said, I do believe that freedom and chaos are what give society meaning and purpose, and I agree that innovation could have been a better takeaway from Ford's work.
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