Brave New World - Aldous Huxley

Brave New World
By Aldous Huxley

Characteristic Track: Starlight by Muse - It has a space-y feel to it. Suits the book well.

In this book, Huxley envisions a utopian society set in the future, where everything is as close to perfection as possible. Reproductive technology, biological engineering and sleep-learning are just some of the developments which changed the society. There are no conflicts, no wars, and everybody is conditioned to love everybody else. Promiscuity is regarded as the norm and sexual conservatism is a thing of the past. In short, everybody is leading a hedonistic lifestyle.

Though there is a social hierarchy in place, there is no chance of a power struggle, for everybody has been conditioned to love their jobs and be content with whatever hand they have been dealt. Only those at the top of the hierarchy appear to have any modicum of free will. The rest are effectively robots, existing only because there are rooms to be cleaned, machines to be maintained and babies to be fed, all in the name of creating the next generation of perfect human beings.

But to every grand blueprint, there is always a downside. What price did Huxley’s society pay for their perfect lifestyle? Read on to find out.

This novel raises several disturbing questions about what modern society is moving towards. Indeed, even though this novel was written in 1932, when science was no where near where it is now, we can already see some evidence of society moving towards what Huxley conceptualized. Genetic engineering, cloning of DNA, in-vitro fertilization, stem-cell research; though there is no doubt as to the benefits these landmark scientific advances have brought to society, in the wrong hands, these technologies could be potentially dangerous. Add to that the question of just where to draw the line when toying with nature, or if there is even a line to speak of at all, and we have some really interesting topics for discussion.

All in all, a definite must-read for everyone in the scientific field, interested in science, or looking to get interested in science. Easy to absorb without excessive scientific jargon, this is a book anyone can pick up and enjoy.

Heres a little video on the various cover art available. Enjoy!