2/29/00

Objectives: Today we will discuss the first half of Aldous Huxley's Brave New World. We will examine the place of technology in Huxley's futuristic society. I will provide some background information on Henry Ford's influence during the 1910s and 1920s.

Some Questions for Discussion:

1) Based on your reading of the novel, what do you think Huxley would say about the Efficiency Movement associated with Taylor? How might his views compare to Chaplin's?

2) What is the basis of social organization in Huxley's dystopia?

3) What characteristics do the inhabitants of Huxley's dystopia share in common?

4) What is the place of the individual in Huxley's dystopia?

5) How important are art, religion, and history?

6) Consumerism, mass production, and Ford-worship are basic tenets of Huxley's dystopia. In emphasizing these characteristics, what is Huxley saying about social values in England and America in the 1920s and early 1930s?

7) How does Huxley's dystopia compare with the Savage Reservation to which Bernard and Lenina travel on vacation?

8) In the novel, Huxley invokes the specter of the totalitarian state. How does he do this? What social, economic, and material factors contribute to the potential for totalitarianism, according to Huxley?