A Utopia is an imaginary place where human ideals are established; an idea of a place that is free from all of the human complications such as pain and suffering. Utopia writing has been around for thousands of years and can be found in almost all different cultures. Opposite of a Utopia, is a Dystopia, a fictional world where everything is unpleasant or dismal. Although the social pressures in which these utopias and dystopias were created from different pressures, all of these stories share the common theme of escapism and “what ifs?” The purpose of this paper will be to compare and contrast the novel Utopia, written by Thomas more with the dystopian novel Brave New world, written by Adlouls Huxley. I will also share my opinions about these …show more content…
A few years after More published Utopia his own life was far from the Utopia he wrote about, he had conflicting views of the protestant reformation led by Martin Luther, and was eventually beheaded by King Henry VII after refusing to acknowledge the King as Supreme Head of the Church of England. More was considered a humanist, or someone that cares greatly about the wellbeing of humans, many of the topics that More emphasized in Utopia were conceived from facets that he felt could be improved. These topics included family life, population control, healthcare, educational systems, and well established trading …show more content…
In fact, words that describe the relationships within a family such as brother, sister, mother, or father, are considered offensive. The reason for this is because the relationships in this society lack emotional ties as everyone is decanted instead of being born. Social castes are determined before decantation and people stay in their castes without any complaint for as long as they live. This society is very controlled by its rulers and instead of encouraging an open education, they are taught by being hypnotized. Through this “Hyponopedia” they are only required to learn what is necessary for their survival and they are taught to hate things that might make them emotional such as flowers and books. In Brave New World the characters have the ability to have children through conception, but since it is looked down upon they use oral contraceptives to prevent this from happening. The controllers also have the ability to control the population through Bokanovsky’s process, or the decantation itself. Similar to Utopia there is Universal Healthcare in the new world that is available to everyone from birth until death. There was also an unlimited supply of Soma for people to take whenever they were started to feel too human. However, some of the purposes of the healthcare seem to be influenced from vanity such as the youth treatments that are made available to people who are aging. While there isn’t a strong
In Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, truth and happiness are falsely engineered to create a perfect society; the belief of the World Controllers that stability is the the key to a utopian society actually led to the creation of an anti-utopian society in which loose morals and artificial happiness exist. Huxley uses symbolism, metaphors, and imagery to satirize the possibiliy of an artificial society in the future as well as the “brave new world” itself.
Utopian literature is characterized by being a place where you are free and everyone is free. Most people in a utopia are happy. However, in the story of “The Pedestrian” and “The Lottery,” the rebel rebels against the system and is punished as a result. In both stories, it seems there is a utopia but as the rebels speak out it, it is revealed that the society is, instead, a dystopia.
Utopia is a term invented by Sir Thomas More in 1515. However, he traces the root two Greek words outopia and eutopia which means a place does not exist and a fantasy, invention. It is widely accepted that Plato was to first to picture a utopian order. In his masterpiece, “Republic”, he formed the principles of ideal commonsense and his utopia (Hertzler, 1922:7). After the classical age, Sir Thomas More assumed to be the first of the utopian writers in early modern period. As a humanist, he gave the world in his “Utopia” a vision of a perfect communistic commonwealth (the history of utopian thought). Utopia’s influence on contemporary and rival scholars is so deep that it has given its name to whole class of literature. Following the appearance of More’s Utopia, there was a lack of Utopian literature for nearly a century (Hertzler, 1922:7). This period ended with the works of Francis Bacon, Campanelle and Harrington. These early modern utopians, being the children of Renaissance, filled with a love of knowledge and high respect for the newly truths of science. Thus, they believed that the common attainment of knowledge means the largest participation of all members of society in its joys and benefits. After the period of early Utopians, continuation of a sprit of French Revolution and initial signs of industrial revolution resulted in the emergence of a new group of Utopians called Socialist Utopians (Hertzler, 1922: 181). The word “Socialism” seems to have been first used by one of the leading Utopian Socialists, St Simon. In politics utopia is a desire that never come true neither now nor afterwards, a wish that is not based on social forces (material conditions and production) and is not supported by the growth and development of political, class forces. This paper discusses the validity of this claim, tries to present and evaluate the political reforms, if any, offered by Socialist Utopians.
A “utopia is that which is in contradiction with reality,” said the famous French novelist Albert Camus in his collection of essays, Between Hell and Reason. History shows us that seemingly exemplary ideals in practice have led to the collapse of societies. Just examine the two most prominent attempts at a utopia: Hitler’s attempt to socialize all of Europe and create the “perfect” Aryan race coupled with Karl Marx’s beliefs to instate communism into society. The final result was the destruction of their perspective visionary worlds. There was one major facet that prevented these two from creating their paradigms: utopias take away individual freedom and identity and therefore society cannot exist. Aldous Huxley’s science fiction novel Brave New World examines the large disconnect between the future and present day societies, showing how several aspects of this dystopian world lead to the downfall of the individual identity, most prominently exemplified by the death of John Savage.
The so-called Utopia – the quasi-perfect society – flourishes in Margaret Cavendish’s “The Description of a New World, Called a Blazing World” and Sir Thomas More’s Utopia. While the former is a dreamlike account of fantasy rule and the latter a pseudo-realistic travelogue, both works paint a picture of worlds that are not so perfect after all. These imperfections glitter like false gemstones in the paths of these Utopians’ religious beliefs, political systems, and philosophical viewpoints.
This serene society greatly contradicts the one we live in. Our society is furnished with hatred and warfare, yet in return, we are given freedom and the privilege of having distinctive characters. Given the nature of human beings, our society is more idealistic to live in. Utopia is an imaginary state, which consists of people who believe they are more capable of living in a group than alone. In such a community, the welfare of the group is the primary interest compared to the comfort of individuals.
Before reading Utopia, it is essential that the reader understand that like Jonathan Swift’s, A Modest Proposal, Utopia is satirical. More creates a frame narrative in which Raphael Hythloday, the novel’s main character, recollects his observations of Utopia during his five-year stay. Hythloday spares no detail in his descriptions of Utopia, as he discusses everything from their military practices, foreign relations, religion, philosophy, and marriage customs. Interestingly enough, everything Hythloday discusses in Book II seems to be a direct response to of all of t...
"'God isn't compatible with machinery and scientific medicine and universal happiness.'" So says Mustapha Mond, the World Controller for Western Europe in Aldous Huxley's novel Brave New World. In doing so, he highlights a major theme in this story of a Utopian society. Although the people in this modernized world enjoy no disease, effects of old age, war, poverty, social unrest, or any other infirmities or discomforts, Huxley asks 'is the price they pay really worth the benefits?' This novel shows that when you must give up religion, high art, true science, and other foundations of modern life in place of a sort of unending happiness, it is not worth the sacrifice.
Alduos Huxley, in his science fiction novel Brave New World written in 1932, presents a horrifying view of a possible future in which comfort and happiness replace hard work and incentive as society's priorities. Mustapha Mond and John the Savage are the symbolic characters in the book with clashing views. Taking place in a London of the future, the people of Utopia mindlessly enjoy having no individuality. In Brave New World, Huxley's distortion of religion, human relationships and psychological training are very effective and contrast sharply with the literary realism found in the Savage Reservation. Huxley uses Brave New World to send out a message to the general public warning our society not to be so bent on the happiness and comfort that comes with scientific advancements.
The books Brave New World by Aldus Huxley and Anthem by Ayn Rand are both valuable twentieth-century contributions to literature. Both books explore the presence of natural law in man and propose a warning for what could happen when man's sense of right and wrong is taken from him. In this essay, I hope to show how these seemingly unrelated novels both expound upon a single, very profound, idea.
In Sir Thomas More 's Utopia, he creates broad distinctions between the way that things were done in his homeland, and they way that they are done in his fictitious country of the same name. In his writing, he describes many aspects of Utopian life, from geography to clothing, all in his attempt to create the perfect society, one that does not, and could not, exist. More specifically, he attempts to eliminate the follies of European society in his descriptions of the Utopians, referencing their societal pillars of utility, uniformity, and humility. He describes their government, clothing, opinions on precious metals, and euthanasia practices, all in an effort to display Utopia as a country of logic, built to hinder and prevent the possibility of human failings.
A lot of authors have expressed their views on utopia in their novels. Some have done it by creating their own perfect world, while others have chosen a different path. They have selected to voice their opinions in anti-utopian novels, or dystopia. An anti-utopia is simply the reverse of a utopian novel. The aim of both novels is ba...
The Utopia Reader defines the word utopia as “a nonexistent society described in detail and normally located in time and space.” (p.1) I would best define utopia as a fictional dream- paradise land where everything is peaceful, perfect and all runs smoothly. There is no crime disease, or pain. People are happy, kind and fair and have each other’s best
Utopia is a reflection of More’s thoughts, feelings and opinions on politics and society at the time. While it may appear that Utopia is a representation of More’s ideal society and world, only some aspects are supported and agreed upon by More. He generally opposes and objects to certain trends of the Utopian society which he feels are ‘ridiculous.’ Despite this More still provides a comment on the social standards, ethics, operations and functions of the time. In doing this he presents his passion of ideas and art.
Thomas More’s Utopia and Aldus Huxley’s Brave New World , are novels about societies that differ from our own. Though the two authors have chosen different approaches to create an alternate society, both books have similarities which represent the visions of men who were moved to great indignation by the societies in which they lived. Both novels have transcended contemporary problems in society , they both have a structured, work based civilization and both have separated themselves from the ways of past society. It is important when reading these novels to focus on the differences as well as the similarities. The two novels differ in their views of love, religion, and the way to eliminate social classes. These differences seem to suggest that if we do not come closer to More’s goal in Utopia, we will end up in a society much like that of Huxley’s Brave New World.