“Brave New World” - Aldous Huxley

 🧪 Oh, the relevance! When I read BNW in high school, I couldn’t possibly fathom a scenario where the topics Huxley addresses would be striking so closely to home, but here we are. I listened to it as an audiobook late last year, and I encourage everyone to give it a listen/reread/or read it for the first time. Do it! And then let’s talk!

🧪 In an odd way, knowing that Huxley was reacting to political upheaval, a rise in authoritarianism, and major technological change (sound familiar?) when he wrote BNW is oddly comforting in that these times might not be as “unprecedented” after all.

🧪 State censorship is a major theme; and you can just guess why I’m starting there. Classic literature —  represented by the works of Shakespeare — is prohibited as it stirs passions and encourages independent thought. By preventing people from feeling deep emotions or questioning authority, the World State can thus maintain order through compliance. 

Modern book bans often target works that raise questions about race, gender, or politics, similarly aiming to limit exposure to ideas that some groups consider challenging or disruptive. Notice, I’m limiting myself to book bans here. The more recent attempts at free speech restrictions being more (ahem) on the nose, shall we say? I’ll leave you all to connect those dots.

Both forms of censorship in BNW and the real world try to control thought by limiting access to challenging stories. In BNW the suppression is systemic and universal. Real world book bans are fragmented and contested. Scarily enough, the speech restrictions being not yet government-enforced.

🧪I have briefly noted at least 5 other areas in which Huxley’s dystopian vision of 1931 is applicable to our current dystopian (?) society below.

Consumption Culture, Instant Gratification – Our society’s emphasis on constant consumption, fast fashion, and one-click delivery mirrors Huxley’s world of engineered desire and disposability. 

Technology and Control – Social media algorithms, data surveillance, and AI can shape behavior and thought much like conditioning in BNW.

Loss of Individuality – Pressure to conform (online trends, curated identities, subtle behavioral influences). Additionally, political polarization pressures people to align along rigid identity-lines, which then determines what news, information, opportunities they access. This is very much like BNW castes: alphas must act like alphas, betas like betas, etc. 

Escapism  – Entertainment, streaming, and substances can act like “soma,” numbing people to discomfort instead of addressing problems.

Genetic Engineering, Bioethics, Reproductive Rights. Perhaps the most obvious theme that is present in BNW and 2025: who controls human reproduction — the individual, the state, or private industry?