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Re: Posted by Corbin_Dallas
I am trying to figure out exactly what goals match the scenario of the novel. I used its title as mine in order to bring attention to mine plus it is in a way fittingly descriptive of expectations. You do know that the title of the novel is taken from a statement by a Shakespearean character in I think The Tempest.
But I see nothing that the present Administration is doing that remotely resembles the society of the novel.
Some developments, such as in vitro fertilization, do resemble parts of the novel.
Caste system is a function of the Industrial Age, where the heads of industry think of the workers as basically chattel to be used and disposed of.
And there certainly is no conditioning of our youth -- except possibly in some skinhead societies.
Constant consumption is the bedrock, though, of the industrialized world -- Corporations make their gross profits from people buying more whether they need it or not.
Again, I see a lot of imagining of scenarios.
posted by
Xeno-x
on February 24, 2010 at 1:11 PM
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Re: Hmmmm??
I read the novel -- I know what it's about.
I find no resemblance between the Obama Administration & goals and the society portrayed in the novel.
posted by
Xeno-x
on February 24, 2010 at 10:46 AM
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Hmmmm??
Then why on earth did you choose "Brave New World" in the title of the post.......What I listed is what the "Brave New World" is......
I was actually agreeing with you.....his goals parallel the novel's premise. LOL
posted by
Corbin_Dallas
on February 24, 2010 at 10:24 AM
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Re: Posted by Corbin_Dallas
I thought the Bush Administration resembled George Orwell's 1984, with wars against various "straw" enemies to keep people patriotic, etc., and the "Patriot" Act, which busted the Constitution all to smithereens.
I don't know where you live, but it's not in the United States I live in -- I don't see the world described in Huxley's novel. I get scared about parts of it, yes -- But Obama is far from an instigator of such.
You confuse a totalitarian society with a socially responsible one.
posted by
Xeno-x
on February 24, 2010 at 9:09 AM
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How appropriate a title for this post.......the perfect fit for true Obamites......
The novel opens in London in the "year of our Ford 632" (AD 2540 in the Gregorian Calendar). The vast majority of the population is unified under The World State, an eternally peaceful, stable global society in which goods and resources are plentiful (because the population is permanently limited to no more than two billion people) and everyone is happy. Natural reproduction has been done away with and children are decanted and raised in Hatcheries and Conditioning Centres. Society is divided into five castes, created in these centres. The highest caste is allowed to develop naturally while it matures in its "decanting bottle". The lower castes are treated to chemical interference to cause arrested development in intelligence or physical growth. The castes are Alphas, Betas, Gammas, Deltas, and Epsilons, with each caste further split into Plus and Minus members. Each Alpha or Beta is the product of one fertilized egg developing into one foetus. Members of other castes are not unique but are instead created using the Bokanovsky process which enables a single egg to spawn (at the point of the story being told) up to 96 children and one ovary to produce thousands of children. This rapid production of specialized children bolsters the efficiency of society. The hypnopaedic process is the process in which they teach the embryos all of the lessons they want them to know.
All members of society are conditioned in childhood to hold the values that the World State idealizes, which improves societal stability and quality of life. Constant consumption is the bedrock of stability for the World State. Children are conditioned from birth to value consumption with such platitudes as "ending is better than mending," i.e., buy a new one instead of fixing the old one. Everyone is encouraged to consume the ubiquitous drug soma. (The name is probably an allusion to a mythical drink of the same name consumed by ancient Indo-Aryans.) Soma is a hallucinogen that takes users on enjoyable, hangover-free "holidays", and it was developed expressly for this purpose. It is also stated that it replicates religious experiences, obviating the need for religion.
Yep, sounds like the elitist state progressives and wannabe elitists like yourself dream of......
posted by
Corbin_Dallas
on February 24, 2010 at 4:51 AM
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