Loading ...Brave New World
I’ve been a science fiction fan for a long time, but also since I’m a slow reader I’ve not read the scores of books described by this genre as one might think. My favorite author is probably Philip K. Dick, although even here I’ve only read four of his novels.
Brave New World is one of those early precursors that some classify as science fiction and others as one of the classic dystopias that also include Orwell’s 1984 and Zamyatin’s We. Having read these other two, I thought I would finally read Brave New World, which I have been meaning to for quite some time. Unfortunately I don’t remember a lot about We, so I can’t really compare it to Brave New World, but 1984 does strike me as being quite different! In Brave New World, we encounter a future that is uncomfortable in many ways, but then again, not altogether horrible. Yes, it carries with it the ideals of happiness above all else, creates a rigid sociological stratification by prenatal and neonatal conditioning, encourages the use of happy pills, etc. On the other hand it seems that if someone is truly “outside the system” all one needs to do is make a ruckus and they will get sent to an island with other “individualists” where they can really explore this antiquated mode of existence. The one case where this fails seems to simply be the arbitrary decision of a bureaucrat, not a hard and fast rule.
Although it’s obvious Huxley is warning against totalitarian/socialistic mechanisms and materialism at the same time, one can also argue that he is not arguing for the “opposite” “savage” mindset of religion, valuing work, denial, and suffering over anything that feels good, etc. In many ways he seems to be arguing simply for moderation between the two and not using either as a dogma, since when taken to the extreme, both can have pretty horrible consequences…
Otherwise, I thought the book quite entertaining. Huxley throws in many cute, campy little phrases that are actually ones that have been drilled into the population in their sleep. Although some of the language and situations sound a bit old, many others are quite forward-looking, including the “feelies” where people go to watch, but also “feel” movies.
I actually listened to an unabridged version through my Audible.com account, but you can actually get the same version on cassette. Michael York narrates and does a great job of capturing all the accents, the emotions (be the real or induced), etc.
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July 21st, 2003 at 2:14 pm
If you like 1984 you should try reading “the City and the Stars” or “Year of Consent.” They’re not as well known, but they’re really good. Oh and about what you said, actually I agree with everything. I’ve been rambling on my blog lately, not spending enough time getting through the entire topic and not covering all interpretations of what I said. I planned on going into how wrong the food pyramid is, and I planned on putting more into how veggies are better than fruit (natural sugars), and I also planned on glorifying organic meat. There’s only one thing I disagree with you on, and that is saturated fat.
Q. What is saturated fat?
Saturated fat is the least healthy of all fats/lipids. Common sources of saturated fat include animal fats, butter, lard, red meat, cheese, cream and milk. Certain vegetable oils, like coconut and palm oil are also high in saturated fat. Saturated fat is solid at room temperature.
It’s worth remembering that the body can manufacture its own saturated fat so you don’t actually need to include any saturated fat in your diet.
Saturated fat is linked to higher levels of cholesterol, heart disease, strokes and breast cancer. For the sake of your health and weight it is best avoided.
(http://www.annecollins.com/dieting/saturated-fat.htm)
Replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats helps lower blood cholesterol levels. Most unsaturated fats come from plant sources. These types of fats are a good source of essential fatty acids. Like all types of fats, they should be eaten in moderation. (http://atoz.iqhealth.com/HealthAnswers/encyclopedia/HTMLfiles/1946.html)
Hope I didn’t eat up too much of your comment space. =) Thanks for reminding me of my falacy, I’ll probably have to go and correct myself tomorrow.
July 21st, 2003 at 2:24 pm
Thanks for the tips, and hey, the more comments the better, right? I’ll take a look for Year of Consent.
The problem I see with the vilification of saturated fats is this. The supposed link between consuming SFA’s and heart disease has only been shown given an otherwise “standard” diet. They have never tested this link with the other variables (protein consumtion and carb consumtion). They don’t even take into consideration these other important factors. In fact most people experience a decrease in cholesterol after going on a low-carb diet despite what is normally an increase in saturated fat. This seems to indicate that our assumptions about Saturated fat, although they may hold true for the majority of people who eat a fairly large quantity of carbs, particularly processed ones, may have limited use. Yes, by all means limit it if you want to, but if you manage to keep your overall carb consumtion down to low levels, there may be no good reason to…
July 23rd, 2003 at 5:30 am
Never read Brave New World, have never been a huge fan of scifi or fantasy literature, my curiosity has been stolen by human nature and from this earth things. But Brave New World is a good entry for the “future reading” list.
As for food, why not cut on both saturated fats and carbs?
July 23rd, 2003 at 8:44 am
I’ve not read much Calvion myself, only some short stories in Cosmicomics. I actually wrote a short story in the same style as Cosmicomics as a writing exercise in a class in college.
As for decreasing both saturated fat and carbs, there’s nothing wrong with that, I just don’t think anyone should be condemned as being unhealthy because they eat saturated fat, which in my mind has not been successfully linked to heart disease unless one is ALSO consuming significant number of carbs…