About 30 years after writing Brave New World, Aldous Huxley gave a long speech at Berkeley about the vision of his novel in the decades since its publication. He was surprised by how many things he'd envisioned had already come to pass, and he explained why his idea of society giving up its will in exchange for pleasure contrasted with George Orwell's terrorist imaginings.
For today's blog posting, follow the link to the YouTube version of Huxley's speech. Watch at least the first two parts, and comment on his observations. What do you think about the distinction he makes between societies throughout history trying to control environments and and the "ultimate revolution," which tries/will try to standardize and influence individuals? What accounts for the change? Can you think of current examples of the way our society tries to control or influence individuals instead of environments? Society can refer to government or business or culture.
Do we have "scientific dictatorships" of the type Huxley describes?
What do you think of the contrast between 1984 and Brave New World? How about his comparison of the Pavlovian methods used by totalitarian rulers and religious leaders like John Wesley?
I'll end with a quote Huxley could have addressed to those of you suffering from stage 4 senioritis: "The most valuable of all education is the ability to make yourself do the thing you have to do, when it has to be done, whether you like it or not."
It may not be transcendentally inspirational, but it has the advantage of being true!
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