'Brave New World' Quotes Explained

  • M.A., Classics, Catholic University of Milan
  • M.A., Journalism, New York University.
  • B.A., Classics, Catholic University of Milan

Aldous Huxley's classic dystopian novel, Brave New World , deals with issues of technological advancements, sexuality, and individuality in the context of a dehumanizing society. Huxley explores how his characters react to living in a dystopian future society, in which everyone’s place is strictly defined. 

Quotes About Love and Sex

"Mother, monogamy, romance. High spurts the fountain; fierce and foamy the wild jet. The urge has but a single outlet. My love, my baby. No wonder those poor pre-moderns were mad and wicked and miserable. Their world didn’t allow them to take things easily, didn’t allow them to be sane, virtuous, happy. What with mothers and lovers, what with the prohibitions they were not conditioned to obey, what with the temptations and the lonely remorses, what with all the diseases and the endless isolating pain, what with the uncertainties and the poverty—they were forced to feel strongly. And feeling strongly (and strongly, what was more, in solitude, in hopelessly individual isolation), how could they be stable?" (Chapter 3)

In Chapter 3, Mustapha Mond explains the history of the World State to a group of boys touring the Hatchery. “Mother, monogamy, and romance” are concepts that are reviled in the World State, as is the whole idea of “feeling strongly”; however, for John, these are core values, as he is devoted to his mother, and strives for monogamy and romance while still experiencing feelings unfiltered by soma . Eventually, abiding by those feelings causes him to try to purify himself with self-flagellation, which, in an unfortunate turn of events, leads to his madness and suicide. His demise does, indirectly, prove Mustapha Mond’s point, as, by eliminating “mother, monogamy, and romance” alongside “feeling strongly,” the World State succeeded in creating a stable society where everybody was superficially happy. Sure, human beings are indoctrinated to behave in one way only according to their caste, and the whole State is a system founded on production and consumption, fueled by the consumerist tendencies of its inhabitants; yet, they are happy. They just need to drink soma and choose merriment over truth.

"'Whore!' he shouted 'Whore! Impudent strumpet!'" (Chapter 13)

John yells these words at Lenina as she gets naked in front of him. Citing his beloved Shakespeare, he addresses her as a “disrespectful whore.” It’s a line coming from Othello, where the titular character is about to kill his wife Desdemona as he became convinced she had been cheating on him. Both instances of the use “impudent strumpet” are misdirected, though: Desdemona was faithful all along, while Lenina had been sleeping around because the society she was raised in conditioned her to do so. Othello and John see their love interest as both sleazy and beautiful, which disturbs John, since he is not able to compute feelings of repulsion and attraction at the same time. In fact, such contrasting feelings eventually lead him to madness and death.

Quotes About Politics

"When the individual feels, the community reels." (Various mentions)

This is a Society’s teaching of the World State, which goes hand in hand with “never put off till tomorrow the fun you can have today.” Lenina pronounces it to Bernard after they had spent a night together in his rooms, which he regretted, saying he wished it had ended differently, especially considering it was their first day together. She claims it’s pointless to put off having any fun, while he wants to “feel something strongly,” which is largely discouraged in the World State, as feelings can overthrow any form of stability. Yet, Bernard yearns for some reeling, too. This conversation makes Lenina feel rejected.

"Yes, and civilization is sterilization." (Chapter 7)

Civilization is sterilization is one of the main Society’s teachings in Brave New World , and different characters utter it throughout the novel. Sterilization can mean different things: one is sanitation and cleanliness, as opposed to the filth people in the Reservation live in. “I had an awful cut on my head when they first brought me here. You can't imagine what they used to put on it. Filth, just filth,” Linda recalls before uttering the statement. Similarly, Lenina equates sterilization with cleanliness, which she insists “is next to fordliness.” However, sterilization can also be interpreted with regards to making women unable to bear children. In the World State, 70% of the female population are made into freemartins, meaning sterile women. They achieve that by injecting the female embryos with a low dose of sex hormones. This makes them sterile and fairly normal, except for the slight tendency to grow a beard. 

"Our world is not the same as Othello's world. You can't make flivvers without steel—and you can't make tragedies without social instability. The world's stable now. People are happy; they get what they want, and they never want what they can't get." (Chapter 16)

With these words which Mustapha Mond speaks to John, in a philosophical-debate-like fashion, he details why Shakespeare is obsolete in the World State. Being a highly educated man, he admits to them being beautiful, but his words are old and, thus, unfit for a society that is primarily oriented to consumerism. What’s more, he belittles John for using Shakespeare as a paradigm of values and ethics, because Shakespeare’s world is very different from the World State. His was a world subjected to turmoil and instability, while the World State is essentially stable, which, in turn, is not a fertile ground for tragedies. 

Quotes About Happiness

"And if ever, by some unlucky chance, anything unpleasant should somehow happen, why, there’s always soma to give you a holiday from the facts. And there’s always soma to calm your anger, to reconcile you to your enemies, to make you patient and long-suffering. In the past you could only accomplish these things by making a great effort and after years of hard moral training. Now, you swallow two or three half-gramme tablets, and there you are. Anybody can be virtuous now. You can carry at least half your morality about in a bottle. Christianity without tears—that’s what soma is." (Chapter 17)

This quote is excerpted from a conversation between John and Mustapha, which takes place in Chapter 17. Mustapha is trying to convince John that soma is a cure-all remedy for any unpleasant emotion which can lead to inefficiency and conflict. Unlike the hard moral training of the past, soma can solve any ailment of the soul almost instantly.

Curiously, the parallel between moral training, which is usually a core aspect of religion, and soma, hints at the origin of the word soma itself. It used to be an entheogenic draught that was consumed during rituals in the Vedic religion. Several myths also see two opposing factions of deities fighting over the ownership of soma. However, while soma was originally consumed by gods and humans alike in order to attain “the light” and immortality, the soma, which in the World State comes in convenient tablets, is mainly used to deal with any “unpleasantness”: Lenina knocks herself out with it after being unable to endure the horrors she witnessed in the Reservation. Meanwhile, Linda, who in her isolation in the Reservation had been looking for a substitute for the soma in mescaline and peyotl, eventually is prescribed a lethal dose of soma once she gets back to the World State.

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brave new world quotes on individuality

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Aldous Huxley

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Critical Essays Society and the Individual in Brave New World

"Every one belongs to every one else," whispers the voice in the dreams of the young in Huxley's future world — the hypnopaedic suggestion discouraging exclusivity in friendship and love. In a sense in this world, every one  is  every one else as well. All the fetal conditioning, hypnopaedic training, and the power of convention molds each individual into an interchangeable part in the society, valuable only for the purpose of making the whole run smoothly. In such a world, uniqueness is uselessness and uniformity is bliss, because social stability is everything.

In the first chapter, the D.H.C. proudly explains the biochemical technology that makes possible the production of virtually identical human beings and, in doing so, introduces Huxley's theme of individuality under assault. Bokanovsky's Process, which arrests normal human development while promoting the production of dozens of identical eggs, deliberately deprives human beings of their unique, individual natures and so makes overt processes for controlling them unnecessary.

The uniformity of the Gammas, Deltas, and Epsilons is accomplished by careful poisoning with alcohol and produces — in Huxley's word — "sub-human" people, capable of work but not of independent thought. For these lower-caste men and women, individuality is literally impossible. As a result, built on a large foundation of identical, easily manipulated people, the society thrives. Stability lives, but individuality — the desire and/or ability to be different — is dead.

"When the individual feels, society reels," Lenina piously reminds Bernard, who strives without success for a genuine human emotion beyond his customary peevishness. This inability is a kind of tragic flaw in Bernard. Even love — acknowledging and cherishing another's unique identity — represents a threat to stability founded on uniformity. The dystopia's alternative — recreational sex — is deliberately designed to blur the distinctions among lovers and between emotions and urges, finding its social and ritual expression in "Orgy-Porgy."

This organized release of sexual urges undercuts passion, the intense feeling of one person for another, as the individuals subordinate even their own sexual pleasure to the supposed joy of their society's unity. At the Solidarity Service, Bernard finds the exercise degrading, just as anyone clinging to any idealism about sex would be revolted. John's sensitive feelings about love suffer even from the representation of such an orgy at the feelies. Significantly, it is the morning after his own experience of "orgy-porgy" that John commits suicide. His most private, cherished sense of love and of self, he feels, has been violated.

In Huxley's dystopia, the drug soma also serves to keep individuals from experiencing the stressful negative effects of conflicts that the society cannot prevent. Pain and stress — grief, humiliation, disappointment — representing uniquely individual reactions to conflict still occur sometimes in the brave new world. The people of the brave new world "solve" their conflict problems by swallowing a few tablets or taking an extended soma -holiday, which removes or sufficiently masks the negative feelings and emotions that other, more creative, problem-solving techniques might have and which cuts off the possibility of action that might have socially disruptive or revolutionary results.

The society, therefore, encourages everyone to take soma as a means of social control by eliminating the affects of conflict. John's plea to the Deltas to throw away their soma , then, constitutes a cry for rebellion that goes unheeded. Soma- tized people do not know their own degradation. They are not even fully conscious that they are individuals.

Both Bernard and John struggle against the society's constant efforts to undermine their individuality, but one character reveals a deeper understanding of the stakes than the other. Bernard rails loudly about the inhumanity of the system. His outrage stems from the injustices he suffers personally, but he apparently is unwilling or unable to fathom a debate or course of action against the malady because he is an Alpha Plus upon whom the process has been at least partially successful. Once Bernard receives the sexual and social attention he believes is his due, his complaints continue merely as a show of daring and bravado. He sees no reason and feels no moral or social compunction to fight for the rights of others oppressed by the social system.

John, on the other hand, truly challenges the brave new world with a view of freedom that includes everyone, even the Deltas who reject his call for rebellion. Although John, like Bernard, suffers from the oppression of the World State, John is able to frame his objections philosophically and debate the issue face to face with World Controller Mustapha Mond because, although John is genetically an Alpha Plus, he has not undergone the conditioning necessary to conform. His objection is not only his own lack of comfort, but the degradation of slavery imposed by the society. John's acceptance of a free human life with all its danger and pain represents an idealistic stand beyond Bernard's comprehension or courage. Flawed, misguided, John nevertheless dares to claim his right to be an individual.

By the end of the novel, all the efforts to free the individual from the grip of the World State have failed, destroyed by the power of convention induced by hypnopaedia and mob psychology. Only Helmholtz and Bernard, bound for banishment in the Falkland Islands, represent the possibility of a slight hope — a limited freedom within the confines of a restrictive society.

The battle for individuality and freedom ends with defeat in Brave New World — a decision Huxley later came to regret. In Brave New World Revisited , a series of essays on topics suggested by the novel, Huxley emphasizes the necessity of resisting the power of tyranny by keeping one's mind active and free. The individual freedoms may be limited in the modern world, Huxley admits, but they must be exercised constantly or be lost.

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  • Brave New World Quotes: The 50 Best & Most Important Lines From Aldous Huxley’s Masterpiece

The 50 Best Brave New World Quotes Cover

Brave New World is a dystopian science-fiction novel set in a futuristic London society in the year 2540 AD. The book was published in 1931 by Aldous Huxley. A literary classic and foundational work of dystopian literature, it still sparks discussions about technology, politics, and consumer culture almost 100 years after it was published. If you’re looking for the best quotes from Brave New World , this organized list is exactly the right place!

Huxley imagined a world in which technological progress would not lead to mass surveillance, mind control, and oppression, like it does in George Orwell’s 1984 . Instead, he painted a future in which “everyone is happy now,” mostly thanks to drugs and frequent, non-committal sex. People are produced in factories, grouped into social classes, and conditioned to love their existence — and spend as much money as they can. At first, everything seems to run smoothly. When Native American John (“the Savage”), who grew up far from the hedonic shackles of civilization, enters the picture, however, the first cracks in this society begin to show…

In this list, we’ve compiled the most popular Brave New World quotes for you, based on the number of votes on Goodreads. We’ve also included Nik’s personal highlights from reading the book cover to cover. Finally, you’ll find some cool, custom-made images, ready for you to share your favorite quotes from the book on social media.

Want a summary of the book so you can better understand the quotes and their context? Download our free PDF, print it, and read along. Or save it for later and read it whenever you want!

You can easily navigate this list by jumping to any section that interests you using the table of contents below. If you want to share a quote, just highlight it, and sharing options for all major social media platforms will appear. Alternatively, you can also use the premade images we created for you in the last section of this list.

Are you ready to enter our Brave New World ? Here we go!

Table of Contents

The 10 Most Popular Quotes From Brave New World

My 40 favorite brave new world quotes, more brave new world quotes, brave new world quotes for sharing on social media, other quote lists.

If you’re wondering what the most popular Brave New World quotes are, here are the ten lines from the book with the highest number of votes on Goodreads , ranging from over 5,000 votes for the top quote all the way to around 500 votes for number 10.

Note that some of the top quotes on Goodreads were actually not from the book but from Huxley on other occasions, and some were from Brave New World Revisited , a follow-on retrospective Huxley published 26 years later. I skipped those in favor of only including quotes from the original book. I also took all quote versions from the 2007 Vintage edition for extra consistency.

1. “Words can be like X-rays if you use them properly — they’ll go through anything. You read and you’re pierced.”

2. “But I don’t want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness. I want sin.”  

3. “Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the overcompensations for misery. And, of course, stability isn’t nearly so spectacular as instability. And being contented has none of the glamour of a good fight against misfortune, none of the picturesqueness of a struggle with temptation, or a fatal overthrow by passion or doubt. Happiness is never grand.”

4. “If one’s different, one’s bound to be lonely.”

5. “I want to know what passion is. I want to feel something strongly.”

6. “One believes things because one has been conditioned to believe them.”

7. “I am I, and I wish I wasn’t.”

8. “I’d rather be myself,” he said. “Myself and nasty. Not somebody else, however jolly.”

9. “‘All right then,’ said the Savage defiantly, ‘I’m claiming the right to be unhappy.’ ‘Not to mention the right to grow old and ugly and impotent; the right to have syphilis and cancer; the right to have too little to eat; the right to be lousy; the right to live in constant apprehension of what may happen tomorrow; the right to catch typhoid; the right to be tortured by unspeakable pains of every kind.’ There was a long silence. ‘I claim them all,’ said the Savage at last.”

10. “No social stability without individual stability.”

When I first read  Brave New World in its entirety recently, I made over 70 highlights in the book. I won’t include the ones that are already in the top 10 above, but here are 40 of the lines I found most noteworthy, in order of when they appear in the book:

11 . “Books and loud noises, flowers and electric shocks—already in the infant mind these couples were compromisingly linked; and after two hundred repetitions of the same or a similar lesson would be wedded indissolubly. What man has joined, nature is powerless to put asunder.” 

12. “Primroses and landscapes, he pointed out, have one grave defect: they are gratuitous. A love of nature keeps no factories busy.”

13. “Impulse arrested spills over, and the flood is feeling, the flood is passion, the flood is even madness: it depends on the force of the current, the height and strength of the barrier. The unchecked stream flows smoothly down its appointed channels into a calm well-being.”

14. “‘Everyone belongs to everyone else, after all.’ One hundred repetitions three nights a week for four years, thought Bernard Marx, who was a specialist on hypnopædia. Sixty-two thousand four hundred repetitions make one truth. Idiots!”

15. “Ending is better than mending.”

16. “You can’t consume much if you sit still and read books.”

17. “‘What you need is a gramme of soma.’ ‘All the advantages of Christianity and alcohol; none of their defects. Take a holiday from reality whenever you like, and come back without so much as a headache or a mythology.’”

18. “The mockery made him feel an outsider; and feeling an outsider he behaved like one.”

19. “‘Did you ever feel,’ he asked, ‘as though you had something inside you that was only waiting for you to give it a chance to come out? Some sort of extra power that you aren’t using—you know, like all the water that goes down the falls instead of through the turbines?’”

20 . “When people are suspicious with you, you start being suspicious with them.”

21. “‘Everybody’s happy now.’ ‘Yes, everybody’s happy now,’ echoed Lenina. They had heard the words repeated a hundred and fifty times every night for twelve years.”

22. “Bernard considered that Electro-magnetic Golf was a waste of time. ‘Then what’s time for?’ asked Lenina in some astonishment.”

23. “‘Talking? But what about?’ Walking and talking—that seemed a very odd way of spending an afternoon.”

24. “‘When the individual feels, the community reels,’ Lenina pronounced. ‘Well, why shouldn’t it reel a bit?’”

25. “Often in the past he had wondered what it would be like to be subjected to some great trial, some pain, some persecution; he had even longed for affliction. […] Now that it looked as though the threats were really to be fulfilled, Bernard was appalled. Of that imagined stoicism, that theoretical courage, not a trace was left.”

26. “‘Rags, rags!’ the boys used to shout at him. ‘But I can read,’ he said to himself, ‘and they can’t. They don’t even know what reading is.’ It was fairly easy, if he thought hard enough about the reading, to pretend that he didn’t mind when they made fun of him.”

27. “A man can smile and smile and be a villain.”

28. “Somehow it was as though he had never really hated Popé before; never really hated him because he had never been able to say how much he hated him. But now he had these words, these words like drums and singing and magic.”

29. “Looking at the two pots, he had to laugh. ‘But the next one will be better,’ he said, and began to moisten another piece of clay. To fashion, to give form, to feel his fingers gaining in skill and power—this gave him an extraordinary pleasure. […] They worked all day, and all day he was filled with an intense, absorbing happiness. ”

30. “‘It is finished,’ said old Mitsima in a loud voice. ‘They are married.’ […] It is finished. Old Mitsima’s words repeated themselves in his mind. Finished, finished… In silence and from a long way off, but violently, desperately, hopelessly, he had loved Kiakimé. And now it was finished.”

31. “He held out his right hand in the moonlight. From the cut on his wrist the blood was still oozing. Every few seconds a drop fell, dark, almost colourless in the dead light. Drop, drop, drop. Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow… He had discovered Time and Death and God.”

32. “The greater a man’s talents, the greater his power to lead astray.”

33. “Murder kills only the individual—and, after all, what is an individual?”

34. “Unorthodoxy threatens more than the life of a mere individual; it strikes at Society itself.”

35. “Success went fizzily to Bernard’s head, and in the process completely reconciled him to a world which, up till then, he had found very unsatisfactory.”

36. “Once you began admitting explanations in terms of purpose—well, you didn’t know what the result might be. It was the sort of idea that might easily recondition the more unsettled minds among the higher castes—make them lose their faith in happiness as the Sovereign Good and take to believing, instead, that the goal was somewhere beyond, somewhere outside the present human sphere; that the purpose of life was not the maintenance of well-being, but some intensification and refining of consciousness, some enlargement of knowledge. Which was, the Controller reflected, quite possibly true. But not, in the present circumstance, admissible.”

37. “‘What fun it would be,’ he thought, ‘if one didn’t have to think about happiness!’”

38. “One of the principal functions of a friend is to suffer (in a milder and symbolic form) the punishments that we should like, but are unable, to inflict upon our enemies. ”

39. “You’ve got to be hurt and upset; otherwise you can’t think of the really good, penetrating, X-rayish phrases.”

40. “The world’s stable now. People are happy; they get what they want, and they never want what they can’t get.”

41. “His conditioning has laid down rails along which he’s got to run.”

42. “Every change is a menace to stability.”

43. “Happiness is a hard master—particularly other people’s happiness. A much harder master, if one isn’t conditioned to accept it unquestioningly, than truth.”

44. “People were ready to have even their appetites controlled then. Anything for a quiet life. We’ve gone on controlling ever since. It hasn’t been very good for truth, of course. But it’s been very good for happiness.”

45. “‘But God doesn’t change.’ ‘Men do, though.’ ‘What difference does that make?’ ‘All the difference in the world.’ ”

46. “You can’t have a lasting civilization without plenty of pleasant vices.”

47. “Civilization has absolutely no need of nobility or heroism. These things are symptoms of political inefficiency. In a properly organized society like ours, nobody has any opportunities for being noble or heroic.”

48. “You got rid of them. Yes, that’s just like you. Getting rid of everything unpleasant instead of learning to put up with it. Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles and by opposing end them… But you don’t do either. Neither suffer nor oppose. You just abolish the slings and arrows. It’s too easy.”

49. “‘What you need,’ the Savage went on, ‘is something with tears for a change. Nothing costs enough here.’ ”

50. “In spite of their sadness—because of it, even; for their sadness was the symptom of their love for one another—the three young men were happy. ”

Want more fascinating quotes from Brave New World ? Well, at this point, the best way for you to find those is most likely to read the book. Here’s a quick overview and link to Amazon (affiliate). You can also ready our summary of the book by clicking the green button.

Favorite Quote

“Words can be like X-rays if you use them properly—they’ll go through anything. You read and you’re pierced.” — Aldous Huxley

The Book in One Sentence

Brave New World * presents a futuristic society engineered perfectly around capitalism and scientific efficiency, in which everyone is happy, conform, and content — but only at first glance.

Why should you read it?

This book explores the negative sides of a seeming utopia. What happens in an ostensibly prosperous world in which everyone appears to be content and satisfied but that, below the surface, has a lot of problems? If that somewhat reminds you of our outwardly shiny world in which everyone seems to be Instagram-happy, read this book.

Key Takeaways

  • If the world were perfect and everything was easy, nothing would have any meaning.
  • We hate not fitting in more than anything else, and yet, we’ll never all be the same.
  • True happiness and suffering are two sides of the same coin — we can’t have one without the other.

If you want to learn more, you can read our free four-minute summary or get a copy for yourself.

If you want to post any of the above quotes to social media, you can do so with our “highlight and share” feature. That said, we also made some custom images for you to easily tap and spread. Some are optimized for Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, others follow Instagram’s classic square format or Pinterest’s more vertical layout.

For some of the images, we used images from Unsplash . For others, we created some custom AI art. In any case, we tried to make each quote fit the dystopian vibe of the book. Happy sharing! 

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Brave New World Quotes #1

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That’s it for our list of the 50 best and most popular quotes from Brave New World . What do you think? Did we nail it? Did we forget an important one? Feel free to share your favorite with us on Twitter!

Looking for more quotes from interesting people and lines from great books? Here are all quote lists we’ve hand-selected for you so far:

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Last Updated on February 14, 2023

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Brave New World

By aldous huxley, brave new world quotes and analysis.

"...COMMUNITY, IDENTITY, STABILITY." Brave New World, 1.

These three words hang in a sign over the Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Centre, which creates and conditions new human life. These words comprise the slogan for society. "Community" means that all persons must work together to maximize the greatest happiness for society as a whole, and it occurs through the artificially implanted ideas of "Identity" that each person has. Some are alphas, betas, gammas, etc., but each person is supposed to be happy with their own identity. Finally, "Stability" is the ultimate goal of society because only through stability can happiness be maintained and all unpleasant feelings and emotions be eradicated.

"...you all remember, I suppose, that beautiful and inspired saying of Our Ford's: History is bunk." Brave New World, 34.

This saying, quoted by Mustapha Mond, instructs his citizens to disregard the painful lessons of history and to ignore the past in order to focus on future progress. Society disregards history because if people understood what came before, they might not be willing to put their trust in science and progress. History is "bunk," as Mond says, because it revolves around human frailties and emotions such as love, anger, vengeance, and temptation. Such things are no longer part of the human experience and, according to Mond, have no place in a society built around maximizing happiness.

"A gramme is better than a damn." Brave New World, 54.

This phrase signifies the maximization of happiness and good feelings in Huxley's utilitarian society. The greatest good for the greatest number of people, according to Huxley, is to minimize any negative emotions or feelings. To do this, individuals receive a gramme of soma, a narcotic that puts them into a state of unfeeling unconsciousness. Anytime individuals feel unhappy, they remember this phrase.

"The more stitches the less riches..." Brave New World, 51.

Every person repeatedly hears this hypnopaedic phrase from an early age. The phrase is embedded so deeply into the consciousness of each person that they take its meaning to be truth. In this case, the phrase sparks consumer behavior, since the more a person repairs their consumer goods, the less they will buy, resulting in less money in the economic system of society. Creating consumption is one of the chief tasks of government because consumption keeps lower castes employed with no time on their hands for disruptive behavior.

"What man has joined, nature is powerless to put asunder." Brave New World, 21.

This phrase, spoken by the Director, plays on the common phrase during a marriage ceremony - "What God has joined, let no man put asunder." In the marriage ceremony, the phrase evokes God's foreknowledge of bringing two persons together in love. In this quote, the Director claims the supremacy of science and progress. Man, not a god or nature, has put together the human body and mind, essentially conquering nature.

"Everyone works for every one else. We can't do without any one. Even Epsilons..." Brave New World, 91.

This quote from Lenina demonstrates the high priority put on community and identity in the society. Social castes move from the Alphas, the most talented and beautiful people in society, to the Epsilons and Gammas, the world's menial laborers. However, each person’s conditioning causes him to feel as though they are all part of an idea economic and social system. Later in the novel, John Savage tries to point out that such a system really only benefits those who rule it, not those that are a part of it.

"So they're having children all the time - like dogs. It's too revolting...And yet John was a great comfort to me." Brave New World, 122.

Linda says this line when Bernard and Lenina visit her on the reservation. Linda, a former inhabitant of the civilized world, tries to explain the incomprehensible behavior of the savages, but this quote illustrates the power of the bonds of parenthood. Huxley often uses surprising emotions in particular characters to demonstrate that there are certain aspects of being human that government and society cannot suppress.

"Why was that old fellow [Shakespeare] such a marvelous propaganda technician? Because he had so many insane, excruciating things to get excited about. You've got to be hurt and upset; otherwise you can't think of the really good, penetrating X-rayish phrases..." Brave New World, 188.

In this passage, Helmholtz Watson responds after John Savage reads to him from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet . Watson realizes that Shakespeare represents a certain kind of mastery over language and emotion - the same kind of work that he himself does, but Shakespeare is infinitely better at such things because he deals with real human emotion, something that the inhabitants now regard as foreign.

"You've got to choose between happiness and what people used to call high art. We've sacrificed the high art." Brave New World, 226.

In this line, Mustapha Mond responds to John Savage's protests that Shakespeare's literature is better than anything that results from society’s emotional engineering. Mond's agrees that Savage has a point, but he claims that in this society, happiness is the greatest good, and great literature can only come from turmoil and unhappiness. In order to achieve the greatest amount of happiness possible, civilized society has sacrificed art.

"It isn't only art that's incompatible with happiness; it's also science. Science is dangerous; we have to keep it most carefully chained and muzzled." Brave New World, 231.

Mustapha Mond posits that science cannot be the only factor in progress. Throughout the novel, the inhabitants of civilized society learn to regard scientific progress as the greatest good, but science often illuminates facts that do not profit an individual's happiness. Progress often makes life more difficult for some and easier for others. Science can thus be a destabilizing force in society.

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Brave New World Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Brave New World is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

The Marrow Thieves

Chapter please?

On page 29, what is the hypnopaedic proverb about "dating"?

My page numbers don't match yours but I recall it was something like "everyone belongs to everyone else."

what is a "soma holiday" ? why does lenina go on one?

A soma holiday is a drug induced form of relaxation.

Study Guide for Brave New World

Brave New World study guide contains a biography of Aldous Huxley, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

  • About Brave New World
  • Brave New World Summary
  • Brave New World Video
  • Character List

Essays for Brave New World

Brave New World essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.

  • Methods of Control in 1984 and Brave New World
  • Cloning in Brave New World
  • God's Role in a Misery-Free Society
  • Character Analysis: Brave New World
  • Influences Behind Brave New World and Fahrenheit 451

Lesson Plan for Brave New World

  • About the Author
  • Study Objectives
  • Common Core Standards
  • Introduction to Brave New World
  • Relationship to Other Books
  • Bringing in Technology
  • Notes to the Teacher
  • Related Links
  • Brave New World Bibliography

Wikipedia Entries for Brave New World

  • Introduction

brave new world quotes on individuality

brave new world quotes on individuality

Brave New World

Aldous huxley, everything you need for every book you read..

Dystopia and Totalitarianism Theme Icon

Community, Identity, Stability.

Dystopia and Totalitarianism Theme Icon

“And that...is the secret of happiness and virtue—liking what you've got to do. All conditioning aims at that: making people like their unescapable social destiny.”

Technology and Control Theme Icon

Alpha children wear grey. They work much harder than we do, because they're so frightfully clever. I'm awfully glad I'm a Beta, because I don't work so hard. And then we are much better than the Gammas and Deltas. Gammas are stupid. They all wear green, and Delta children wear khaki. Oh no, I don't want to play with Delta children. And Epsilons are still worse. They're too stupid to be able to read or write. Besides they wear black, which is such a beastly colour. I'm so glad I'm a Beta.

“Till at last the child's mind is these suggestions, and the sum of the suggestions is the child's mind. And not the child's mind only. The adult's mind too—all his life long. The mind that judges and desires and decides—made up of these suggestions. But all these suggestions are our suggestions... Suggestions from the State.”

“You all remember, I suppose, that beautiful and inspired saying of Our Ford's: History is bunk.”

Ending is better than mending. The more stitches, the less riches.

Industrialism and Consumption Theme Icon

“Ford, we are twelve; oh make us one, Like drops within the Social River; Oh, make us now together run As swiftly as thy shining Flivver. Come, Greater Being, Social Friend, Annihilating Twelve-in-One! We long to die, for when we end, Our larger life has but begun. Feel how the Greater Being comes! Rejoice and, in rejoicings, die! Melt in the music of the drums! For I am you and you are I. Orgy-porgy, Ford and fun, Kiss the girls and make them One. Boys at One with girls at peace; Orgy-porgy gives release.”

“A gramme in time saves nine.”

"O brave new world," he repeated. "O brave new world that has such people in it. Let's start at once."

“The greater a man's talents, the greater his power to lead astray. It is better that one should suffer than that many should be corrupted. Consider the matter dispassionately, Mr. Foster, and you will see that no offence is so heinous as unorthodoxy of behavior. Murder kills only the individual—and, after all, what is an individual?”

“Why was [Shakespeare] such a marvellous propaganda technician? Because he had so many insane, excruciating things to get excited about. You've got to be hurt and upset; otherwise you can't think of the really good, penetrating X-rayish phrases.”

“Put your arms around me...Hug me till you drug me, honey...Kiss me till I'm in a coma. Hug me honey, snuggly...”

"Free, free!" the Savage shouted, and with one hand continued to throw the soma into the area while, with the other, he punched the indistinguishable faces of his assailants. "Free!" And suddenly there was Helmholtz at his side–"Good old Helmholtz!"—also punching—"Men at last!"—and in the interval also throwing the poison out by handfuls through the open window. "Yes, men! men!" and there was no more poison left. He picked up the cash-box and showed them its black emptiness. "You're free!"

Howling, the Deltas charged with a redoubled fury.

“The world's stable now. People are happy; they get what they want, and they never want what they can't get... And if anything should go wrong, there's soma.”

You've got to choose between happiness and what people used to call high art.

“Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the over-compensations for misery. And, of course, stability isn't nearly so spectacular as instability. And being contented has none of the glamour of a good fight against misfortune, none of the picturesqueness of a struggle with temptation, or a fatal overthrow by passion or doubt. Happiness is never grand.”

“There's always soma to calm your anger, to reconcile you to your enemies, to make you patient and long-suffering. In the past you could only accomplish these things by making a great effort and after years of hard moral training. Now, you swallow two or three half-gramme tablets, and there you are. Anybody can be virtuous now. You can carry at least half your morality about in a bottle. Christianity without tears—that's what soma is.”

"In fact,” said Mustapha Mond, “you're claiming the right to be unhappy.”

“All right then,” said the Savage defiantly, “I'm claiming the right to be unhappy.”

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About the Book

Brave New World

By aldous huxley.

Aldous Huxley defies the typical dystopian narrative in 'Brave New World' by portraying a seemingly benign state, making it a unique and popular work of science fiction.

Aldous Huxley skillfully blends social critique with philosophical inquiries on the cost of sacrificing individuality for stability and technological advancement.

Ebuka Igbokwe

Written by Ebuka Igbokwe

Bachelor's degree from Nnamdi Azikiwe University.

‘ Brave New World ’ is set mostly in London in 2540CE, in a world where technology reigns, humans are manufactured in the lab and classified in a rigid caste system based on intelligence. It is Aldous Huxley’s fifth novel, published in 1932. Subjects treated in this dystopian novel include loss of individuality, social conditioning, and a technologically-controlled society.

Key Facts about Brave New World

  • Title: ‘Brave New World ‘
  • Published: 1932
  • Literary Period: Modernism
  • Genre: Dystopian Fiction
  • Point of View: Third-Person
  • Setting: most of the novel is set in London, 2540 CE
  • Climax: The Savage and Mustapha Mond engage in a battle of opposing philosophical perspectives.

Aldous Huxley and Brave New World

Although it is Aldous Huxley’s fifth novel, ‘ Brave New World ’ is the first dystopian novel he wrote. In his other works, the author displays a keen sensitivity to social circumstances , and he often examines the conflict between the individual’s interests and social convention in satires. In this work, the author gives this examination the most exhaustive treatment of all his works.

Aldous Huxley was born in 1894 and witnessed the debilitating effects of the First World War, the technological and economic boom of the 1920s , and the crushing economic depression of the late 1920s. The upheavals of this period raised questions of what political orders one may expect to arise in the future.

With ‘ Brave New World ,’ Aldous Huxley countered a trend in imagining dystopias. While most dystopias are painted as oppressive and tyrannical, this work presents a seemingly benign state. Huxley so convincingly portrays this world that ‘ Brave New World ’ stands out as one of the most popular works of science fiction, and it is his most influential work.

Books Related to Brave New World

‘ The Sleeper Awakens ’ by H.G. Wells is a science fiction novel first published in 1899. The story follows the protagonist, Graham, who falls into a deep sleep in the late 19th century and awakens over two centuries later to a drastically transformed world. He discovers that he has become the de facto ruler of a dystopian society, ruled by an oppressive oligarchy, and he must grapple with the political intrigues in which he finds himself enmeshed. The novel explores themes of power, technology, and social inequality in a future that is both fascinating and nightmarish.

‘ The Handmaid’s Tale ’ by Margaret Atwood is a dystopian novel set in the near-future theocratic Republic of Gilead, where a theocratic regime has stripped away women’s rights and subjugated them to a system of reproductive servitude. The story follows Offred, a “handmaid” who is forced to bear children for the ruling class. The populace is under constant surveillance, among other strictures of an oppressive regime. Atwood’s novel is an exploration of gender, politics, and the dangers of extreme religious fundamentalism.

‘ 1984 ’ by George Orwell is a classic dystopian novel set in a totalitarian society under the oppressive rule of the Party and its leader, Big Brother. The story follows Winston Smith, a low-ranking Party member who becomes disillusioned with the regime’s thought control, surveillance, and historical manipulation. He embarks on a forbidden love affair and keeps a secret diary. However, Winston and his lover are exposed, and he is arrested and brainwashed to love Big Brother. The novel deals with the dangers of totalitarianism, propaganda, and the erosion of individual freedoms in a surveillance-dominated future.

‘ The Giver ’ by Lois Lowry. The protagonist Jonas is a twelve-year-old member of a society where children are chosen for their life tasks by a council of Elders. These roles are immutable and not to be questioned. Using genetic engineering, this society has eliminated pain and anxiety from the lives of the citizens, and in consequence, emotional depth as well. Jonas is picked for a special task which makes him different from everyone else, and the things he learns about his society raise disturbing questions about what is right or wrong in his world. Themes such as euthanasia, eugenics, and other moral questions of weight are explored in this novel.

‘ A Clockwork Orange ’ by Anthony Burgess is a dark and provocative novel set in a dystopian future, following the life of the delinquent and anti-hero, Alex. The story delves into the violent and morally turbulent world of Alex and his gang of “droogs,” as they commit acts of brutality and engage in ‘ultraviolence.’ However, Alex’s life takes a dramatic turn when he is arrested and subjected to a controversial psychological experiment that attempts to reform him but strips him of his free will. Burgess crafts a disturbing story that raises questions about the ethics of social engineering and personal choice.

The Lasting Impact of Brave New World

Aldous Huxley’s ‘ Brave New World ’ has had a profound and lasting impact on literature, science fiction, and our understanding of the potential consequences of rapid technological and social change. This dystopian masterpiece has left its mark on the literary world and beyond.

‘ Brave New World ’ stands as a seminal work within the science fiction genre. Huxley’s vision of a highly controlled, pleasure-driven society, where technology and government maintain order and suppress individuality, is a model example of dystopian literature. It has inspired countless subsequent authors and filmmakers to explore similar themes like the consequences of technological advancement , loss of personal freedom, and the manipulation of human nature.

The novel’s exploration of the dehumanizing effects of technology and consumer culture remains incredibly relevant in the 21st century. With the rise of social media and the developments in artificial intelligence and biotechnology, the questions raised by Huxley about the erosion of individuality, the impact of instant gratification, and the loss of privacy have gained even greater significance. As we navigate the complexities of a digital age, the story of ‘ Brave New World ’ stands as a canary in the mine before us, urging us to consider the ethical and societal implications of unchecked technological progress.

Moreover, the novel is a philosophical reflection on the nature of and relationship between happiness and freedom. Huxley’s World State offers a seductive vision of a society where suffering and conflict have been eliminated but at the cost of genuine human experience and individual choice. This tension between happiness and freedom continues when considering the trade-offs involved in modern life, as individuals balance convenience and comfort against personal autonomy and the quest for meaning in life.

In addition to its impact on literature and philosophical thought, ‘ Brave New World ’ has also influenced popular culture. Phrases like “soma,” the fictional drug used to pacify the population in the novel, have entered the lexicon as symbols of escapism and complacency. References to Huxley’s work can be found in music, films, and even political discourse, reflecting its enduring relevance. Also, a TV series based on the novel was released in 2020.

Brave New World Review ⭐️

Brave new world quotes 💬.

These quotes serve as a commentary on the essence of Huxley’s dystopian society, exploring the cost of sacrificing individual freedom and genuine human experience for societal control and technological progress.

Brave New World Historical Context 📖

Inspired by the tumultuous political events of the early 20th century, Aldous Huxley explored future political orders in his influential dystopian fiction.

Brave New World Character List 📖

Diverse characters populate a meticulously controlled society and become symbols of the dystopian narrative’s clash between individuality and conditioned conformity.

Brave New World Themes and Analysis 📖

‘Brave New World’ explores the perils of technological advancement, the consequences of sacrificing individuality for societal stability, and the ethical dilemmas of manipulating human nature.

Brave New World Summary 📖

The protagonist Bernard rebels against his conditioned conformity in a dystopian society of genetically engineered humans controlled by pleasure-driven distractions.

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Brave New World Helmholtz Watson Quotes

"What?" said Helmholtz, in astonishment. "But we're always saying that science is everything." […] "Yes; but what sort of science?" asked Mustapha Mond sarcastically. "You've had no scientific training, so you can't judge. I was a pretty good physicist in my time. Too good — good enough to realize that all our science is just a cookery book, with an orthodox theory of cooking that nobody's allowed to question, and a list of recipes that mustn't be added to except by special permission from the head cook." (16.54-7)

Aha! Mustapha draws a very important distinction here between the two types of science we've seen in Brave New World . The first is the sort of technology that enables the World State to control and govern. The second, however, is the kind of pure, motiveless, science-for-the-sake-of-knowledge that has been outlawed for its dangers. It is this second kind of science that needs to be muzzled, in Mustapha's eyes.

Helmholtz rose from his pneumatic chair. "I should like a thoroughly bad climate," he answered. "I believe one would write better if the climate were bad. If there were a lot of wind and storms, for example…" (16.68)

This passage makes it clear that Helmholtz has learned the value of sacrifice, of intentional suffering —a nd he is willing to pursue his passion anyway. It is also the first step in his claim that he wants to write about some sort of passion that he can understand. Since he can't grapple with love or unfulfilled lust or jealousy, he plans to try to experience physical suffering (in this case, through a bad climate) instead. (FYI, this fits into our "weather is super important" argument in "Symbols, Imagery, Allegory." )

"Oh, as far as they go." Helmholtz shrugged his shoulders. "But they go such a little way. They aren't important enough, somehow. I feel I could do something much more important. Yes, and more intense, more violent. But what? What is there more important to say? And how can one be violent about the sort of things one's expected to write about? Words can be like X-rays, if you use them properly — they'll go through anything. You read and you're pierced. That's one of the things I try to teach my students — how to write piercingly. But what on earth's the good of being pierced by an article about a Community Sing, or the latest improvement in scent organs? Besides, can you make words really piercing — you know, like the very hardest X-rays — when you're writing about that sort of thing? Can you say something about nothing? That's what it finally boils down to. I try and I try…" (4.2.29)

Helmholtz's outlet for his individuality and his sense of human passion is writing. For John, it is Shakespeare. Mustapha, we find out later, once felt the same way about science. Bernard, on the other hand, seems to have no outlet — this may be why he ultimately ends up a weak character.

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30 Brave New World Soma Quotes With Page Numbers

In Brave New World, ‘Soma’ is a drug used for societal control, replacing emotions and personal bonds.

“Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley presents a dystopian future where desire for pleasure trumps free will, individuality, and intellectual pursuit.

Soma use in the novel, shows the importance of feeling highs and lows to be human.

Brave New World Quotes With Page Numbers

An image of the Earth from space, with the text overlay: "Brave New World Soma Quotes With Page Numbers"

Brave New World Soma Theme Analysis

In Aldous Huxley’s dystopian novel, “Brave New World,” the recurrent theme of Soma showcases society’s systemic use of medication as a mechanism for maintaining social order.

This substance, Soma, embodies the power of societal control through its role as a tool for creating contentment, suppressing individuality, and circumventing any form of discontent or rebellion.

Soma as an Instrument of Happiness: The citizens of World State heavily rely on Soma to derive a false sense of happiness and fulfillment.

Henry, for instance, takes three half-gramme tablets of Soma with his coffee (Chapter 5, Page 50). This narcotic effect of the Soma tablets creates what Huxley refers to as “the warm, the richly coloured, the infinitely friendly world of soma-holiday” (Chapter 5, Page 51).

Suppression of Individual Thought: When individuals like Lenina question the state of affairs, Soma’s allure mutes these stirring thoughts.

The psychoactive drug makes it religious for citizens to avoid dwelling on such doubts. For instance, “…why you don’t take soma when you have these dreadful ideas of yours. You’d forget all about them… ” (Chapter 5, Page 61).

Obliteration of Dissent and Potential Rebellion: The colonial society Huxley establishes in Brave New World utilizes Soma as an instrument of authoritarian power to suppress any form of potential rebellion.

Soma is a barrier to building “a quite impenetrable wall between the actual universe and their minds” (Chapter 5, Page 52), preventing any individual thought or realization that could foster rebellion.

Induced Mindless Subservience: By constantly being under Soma’s influence, citizens are essentially in mindless servitude.

This servitude is evident when the citizens quaff the “strawberry ice-cream soma” with the chant, “I drink to my annihilation” (Chapter 5, Page 54), demonstrating their unthinking submission to the World State’s manipulation.

Contrast with Natural Happiness: Benito’s character offers a contrasting view of Soma. Despite living in the same society, Benito could traverse life without the need for Soma as “Reality for Benito was always sunny” (Chapter 4, Page 40).

The implication is that inherent human qualities like positivity and good nature can exist independently of artificial drug-induced happiness.

Huxley uses the Soma theme in Brave New World to critique a society that resorts to narcotics to maintain stability and order.

Although Soma ensures a peaceful and conflict-free society, it also eradicates individual thought and genuine human emotions, dehumanizing the populace in pursuing an artificial utopia.

To truly experience the essence of being human, it is essential to navigate through the exhilarating heights of joy and excitement and the profound depths of sorrow and dissatisfaction.

Brave New World Soma Quotes With Page Numbers

“There was a thing called Heaven; but all the same they used to drink enormous quantities of alcohol.” … “There was a thing called the soul and a thing called immortality.” … “But they used to take morphia and cocaine.” … “Two thousand pharmacologists and biochemists were subsidized in A.F. 178.” … “Six years later it was being produced commercially. The perfect drug.” … “Euphoric, narcotic, pleasantly hallucinant.” … “All the advantages of Christianity and alcohol; none of their defects.” … “Take a holiday from reality whenever you like, and come back without so much as a headache or a mythology.” … “Stability was practically assured.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator: Repeated propaganda , Chapter 3, Pages 35, 36
“..there is always soma, delicious soma, half a gramme for a half-holiday, a gramme for a week-end, two grammes for a trip to the gorgeous East, three for a dark eternity on the moon…” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Bernard Marx , Chapter 3, Page 37
“Benito was notoriously good-natured. People said of him that he could have got through life without ever touching soma. The malice and bad tempers from which other people had to take holidays never afflicted him. Reality for Benito was always sunny.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator about Benito , Chapter 4, Page 40
“you do look glum! What you need is a gramme of soma.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Benito , Chapter 4, Page 40
“Soma was served with the coffee. Lenina took two half-gramme tablets and Henry three.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator about Soma , Chapter 5, Page 50
“the warm, the richly coloured, the infinitely friendly world of soma-holiday. How kind, how good-looking, how delightfully amusing every one was! ” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator about soma , Chapter 5, Page 51
“Swallowing half an hour before closing time, that second dose of soma had raised a quite impenetrable wall between the actual universe and their minds.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator about soma , Chapter 5, Page 52
“The service had begun. The dedicated soma tablets were placed in the centre of the table. The loving cup of strawberry ice-cream soma was passed from hand to hand and, with the formula, “I drink to my annihilation,” twelve times quaffed.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator and the President , Chapter 5, Page 54
“The service had begun. The dedicated soma tablets were placed in the centre of the table. The loving cup of strawberry ice-cream soma was passed from hand to hand and, with the formula, “I drink to my annihilation,” twelve times quaffed.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator about soma , Chapter 5, Page 54
“By this time the soma had begun to work. Eyes shone, cheeks were flushed, the inner light of universal benevolence broke out on every face in happy, friendly smiles. Even Bernard felt himself a little melted.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator , Chapter 5, Page 54
“I don’t understand anything,” she said with decision, determined to preserve her incomprehension intact. “Nothing. Least of all,” she continued in another tone “why you don’t take soma when you have these dreadful ideas of yours. You’d forget all about them. And instead of feeling miserable, you’d be jolly. So jolly,” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator , Chapter 5, Page 61
“When the Warden started booming, she had inconspicuously swallowed half a gramme of soma, with the result that she could now sit, serenely not listening, thinking of nothing at all, but with her large blue eyes fixed on the Warden’s face in an expression of rapt attention.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator about Lenina , Chapter 6, Page 68
“Was and will make me ill, I take a gram and only am.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Lenina about soma , Chapter 6, Page 70
“Bernard also laughed; after two grammes of soma the joke seemed, for some reason, good. Laughed and then, almost immediately, dropped off to sleep,…” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator about Bernard , Chapter 6, Page 70
“But it’s terrible,” Lenina whispered. “It’s awful. We ought not to have come here.” She felt in her pocket for her soma – only to discover that, by some unprecedented oversight, she had left the bottle down at the rest-house. Bernard’s pockets were also empty.” Lenina was left to face the horrors of Malpais unaided.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Lenina , Chapter 7, Page 74
“Lenina was still sobbing. “Too awful,” she kept repeating, and all Bernard’s consolations were in vain. “Too awful! That blood!” She shuddered. “Oh, I wish I had my soma.”  ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Lenina , Chapter 7, Page 77
“A gramme is better than a damn,” said Lenina mechanically from behind her hands. “I wish I had my soma!”  ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Lenina , Chapter 7, Page 78
“Her tears began to flow again. “I suppose John told you. What I had to suffer – and not a gramme of soma to be had. Only a drink of mescal every now and then, when Popé used to bring it.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Lenina , Chapter 7, Page 80
“Lenina felt herself entitled, after this day of queerness and horror, to a complete and absolute holiday. As soon as they got back to the rest-house, she swallowed six half-gramme tablets of soma, lay down on her bed, and within ten minutes had embarked for lunar eternity. It would be eighteen hours at the least before she was in time again.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator about Lenina , Chapter 9, Page 94
“By his heretical views on sport and soma, by the scandalous unorthodoxy of his sex-life, by his refusal to obey the teachings of Our Ford and behave out of office hours, ‘even as a little infant,'” (here the Director made the sign of the T), “he has proved himself an enemy of Society, a subverter, ladies and gentlemen, of all Order and Stability, a conspirator against Civilization itself. For this reason I propose to dismiss him, to dismiss him with ignominy from the post he has held in this Centre…” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Directer about soma , Chapter 10, Page 100
“So the best people were quite determined not to see Linda. And Linda, for her part, had no desire to see them. The return to civilization was for her the return to soma, was the possibility of lying in bed and taking holiday after holiday, without ever having to come back to a headache or a fit of vomiting, without ever being made to feel as you always felt after peyotl, as though you’d done something so shamefully anti-social that you could never hold up your head again. Soma played none of these unpleasant tricks. The holiday it gave was perfect and, if the morning after was disagreeable, it was so, not intrinsically, but only by comparison with the joys of the holiday. The remedy was to make the holiday continuous. Greedily she clamoured for ever larger, ever more frequent doses. Dr. Shaw at first demurred; then let her have what she wanted. She took as much as twenty grammes a day. “Which will finish her off in a month or two,” the doctor confided to Bernard. “One day the respiratory centre will be paralyzed. No more breathing. Finished. And a good thing too. If we could rejuvenate, of course it would be different. But we can’t.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator and Dr. Shaw , Chapter 11, Page 103
“Surprisingly, as every one thought (for on soma-holiday Linda was most conveniently out of the way), John raised objections. “But aren’t you shortening her life by giving her so much?” “In one sense, yes,” Dr. Shaw admitted. “But in another we’re actually lengthening it.” The young man stared, uncomprehending. “Soma may make you lose a few years in time,” the doctor went on. “But think of the enormous, immeasurable durations it can give you out of time. Every soma-holiday is a bit of what our ancestors used to call eternity.”  ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Bernard Marx and Dr. Shaw , Chapter 11, Page 103
“In the end John was forced to give in. Linda got her soma. Thenceforward she remained in her little room on the thirty-seventh floor of Bernard’s apartment house, in bed, with the radio and television always on, and the patchouli tap just dripping, and the soma tablets within reach of her hand – there she remained; and yet wasn’t there at all, was all the time away, infinitely far away, on holiday; on holiday in some other world, where the music of the radio was a labyrinth of sonorous colours, a sliding, palpitating labyrinth, that led (by what beautifully inevitable windings) to a bright centre of absolute conviction; where the dancing images of the television box were the performers in some indescribably delicious all-singing feely; where the dripping patchouli was more than scent – was the sun, was a million saxophones, was Popé making love, only much more so, incomparably more, and without end.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator about John, Linda, and Bernard , Chapter 11, Page 104
“The Savage,” wrote Bernard, “refuses to take soma, and seems much distressed because of the woman Linda, his m—, remains permanently on holiday. It is worthy of note that, in spite of his m—‘s senility and the extreme repulsiveness of her appearance, the Savage frequently goes to see her and appears to be much attached to her – an interesting example of the way in which early conditioning can be made to modify and even run counter to natural impulses (in this case, the impulse to recoil from an unpleasant object).” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Bernard , Chapter 11, Page 106
“What’s in those” (remembering The Merchant of Venice) “those caskets?” the Savage enquired when Bernard had rejoined him. “The day’s soma ration,” Bernard answered rather indistinctly; for he was masticating a piece of Benito Hoover’s chewing-gum. “They get it after their work’s over. Four half-gramme tablets. Six on Saturdays.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Savage and Bernard , Chapter 11, Page 110-111
”Hug me till you drug me, honey; Kiss me till I’m in a coma; Hug me, honey, snuggly bunny; Love’s as good as soma.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Lenina , Chapter 12, Page 112
“Drying her eyes, Lenina walked across the roof to the lift. On her way down to the twenty-seventh floor she pulled out her soma bottle. One gramme, she decided, would not be enough; hers had been more than a one-gramme affliction. But if she took two grammes, she ran the risk of not waking up in time to-morrow morning. She compromised and, into her cupped left palm, shook out three half-gramme tablets.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator about Lenina , Chapter 11, Page 115
“Helmholtz and the Savage took to one another at once. So cordially indeed that Bernard felt a sharp pang of jealousy. In all these weeks he had never come to so close an intimacy with the Savage as Helmholtz immediately achieved. Watching them, listening to their talk, he found himself sometimes resentfully wishing that he had never brought them together. He was ashamed of his jealousy and alternately made efforts of will and took soma to keep himself from feeling it. But the efforts were not very successful; and between the soma-holidays there were, of necessity, intervals. The odious sentiment kept on returning.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator , Chapter 12, Page 123
“When one has leant forward, nearer and nearer, with parted lips-only to find oneself, quite suddenly, as a clumsy oaf scrambles to his feet, leaning towards nothing at all-well, there is a reason, even with half a gramme of soma circulating in one’s blood-stream, a genuine reason for annoyance.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Lenina , Chapter 13, Page 128
“Soma distribution!” shouted a loud voice. “In good order, please. Hurry up there.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, A loud voice . Chapter 15, Page 142
“Bring three men,” he ordered, “and take Mr. Marx into a bedroom. Give him a good soma vaporization and then put him to bed and leave him.” The fourth secretary went out and returned with three green-uniformed twin footmen. Still shouting and sobbing. Bernard was carried out. ” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Mustapha Mond and the Narrator , Chapter 16, Page 154
“We are not our own any more than what we possess is our own. We did not make ourselves, we cannot be supreme over ourselves. We are not our own masters. We are God’s property. Is it not our happiness thus to view the matter? Is it any happiness or any comfort, to consider that we are our own? It may be thought so by the young and prosperous. These may think it a great thing to have everything, as they suppose, their own way–to depend on no one–to have to think of nothing out of sight, to be without the irksomeness of continual acknowledgment, continual prayer, continual reference of what they do to the will of another. But as time goes on, they, as all men, will find that independence was not made for man–that it is an unnatural state–will do for a while, but will not carry us on safely to the end …'” Mustapha Mond paused, put down the first book and, picking up the other, turned over the pages. “Take this, for example,” he said, and in his deep voice once more began to read: “‘A man grows old; he feels in himself that radical sense of weakness, of listlessness, of discomfort, which accompanies the advance of age; and, feeling thus, imagines himself merely sick, lulling his fears with the notion that this distressing condition is due to some particular cause, from which, as from an illness, he hopes to recover. Vain imaginings! That sickness is old age; and a horrible disease it is. They say that it is the fear of death and of what comes after death that makes men turn to religion as they advance in years. But my own experience has given me the conviction that, quite apart from any such terrors or imaginings, the religious sentiment tends to develop as we grow older; to develop because, as the passions grow calm, as the fancy and sensibilities are less excited and less excitable, our reason becomes less troubled in its working, less obscured by the images, desires and distractions, in which it used to be absorbed; whereupon God emerges as from behind a cloud; our soul feels, sees, turns towards the source of all light; turns naturally and inevitably; for now that all that gave to the world of sensations its life and charms has begun to leak away from us, now that phenomenal existence is no more bolstered up by impressions from within or from without, we feel the need to lean on something that abides, something that will never play us false–a reality, an absolute and everlasting truth. Yes, we inevitably turn to God; for this religious sentiment is of its nature so pure, so delightful to the soul that experiences it, that it makes up to us for all our other losses.'” Mustapha Mond shut the book and leaned back in his chair. “One of the numerous things in heaven and earth that these philosophers didn’t dream about was this” (he waved his hand), “us, the modern world. ‘You can only be independent of God while you’ve got youth and prosperity; independence won’t take you safely to the end.’ Well, we’ve now got youth and prosperity right up to the end. What follows? Evidently, that we can be independent of God. ‘The religious sentiment will compensate us for all our losses.’ But there aren’t any losses for us to compensate; religious sentiment is superfluous. And why should we go hunting for a substitute for youthful desires, when youthful desires never fail? A substitute for distractions, when we go on enjoying all the old fooleries to the very last? What need have we of repose when our minds and bodies continue to delight in activity? of consolation, when we have soma? of something immovable, when there is the social order?” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Mustapha Mond and the Narrator , Page 157-59
“In a properly organized society like ours, nobody has any opportunities for being noble or heroic. Conditions have got to be thoroughly unstable before the occasion can arise. When there are wars, where there are divided allegiances, where there are temptations to be resisted, objects of love to be fought for or defended – there, obviously, nobility and heroism have some sense. But there aren’t any wars nowadays. The greatest care is taken to prevent you from loving anyone too much. There’s no such thing as a divided allegiance; you’re so conditioned that you can’t help doing what you ought to do. And what you ought to do is on the whole so pleasant, so many of the natural impulses are allowed free play, that there really aren’t any temptations to resist. And if ever, by some unlucky chance, anything unpleasant should somehow happen, why, there’s always soma to give you a holiday from the facts. And there’s always soma to calm your anger, to reconcile you to your enemies, to make you patient and long-suffering. In the past you could only accomplish these things by making a great effort and after years of hard moral training. now, you swallow two or three half-gramme tablets, and there you are. Anybody can be virtuous now. You can carry at least half your mortality about in a bottle. Christianity without tears – that’s what soma is.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Mustapha Mond , Chapter 17, Pages 161, 162
“Benighted fool!” shouted the man from The Fordian Science Monitor, “why don’t you take soma?” “Get away!” The Savage shook his fist. The other retreated a few steps then turned round again. “Evil’s an unreality if you take a couple of grammes.” “Kohakwa iyathtokyai!” The tone was menacingly derisive. “Pain’s a delusion.” “Oh, is it?” said the Savage and, picking up a thick hazel switch, strode forward. The man from The Fordian Science Monitor made a dash for his helicopter.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Savage and the man from the science monitor , Chapter 18, Pages 170-71
“It was after midnight when the last of the helicopters took its flight. Stupefied by soma, and exhausted by a long-drawn frenzy of sensuality, the Savage lay sleeping in the heather. The sun was already high when he awoke. He lay for a moment, blinking in owlish incomprehension at the light; then suddenly remembered-everything. “Oh, my God, my God!” He covered his eyes with his hand.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, The Narrator and the Savage , Chapter 18, Page 176

What is the quote about Soma in Brave New World?

“And if ever, by some unlucky chance, anything unpleasant should somehow happen, why, there’s always soma to give you a holiday from the facts. And there’s always soma to calm your anger, to reconcile you to your enemies, to make you patient and long-suffering.” ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Mustapha Mond, Page 162

What is an example of Soma usage in Brave New World?

In Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World,” Soma is a recreational drug, usage of which is depicted through several main characters in the novel.

For example, the character Lenina is shown to consume Soma responsibly, according to societal norms and standards, whereas Linda’s use of Soma is excessive, leading to her eventual overdose. John, on the other hand, completely rejects the drug.

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  3. 15 Provocative Quotes From Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley

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COMMENTS

  1. Brave New World Quotes: Individuality

    "Myself and nasty. Not somebody else, however jolly." Bernard says this to Lenina after she pressures him to eat a soma sundae so that he might have more fun. Bernard refuses to participate in many collective activities and does not want to lose his own identity with mood or personality altering substances.

  2. Individuality Theme in Brave New World

    "Sooo much more helpful than SparkNotes. The way the content is organized and presented is seamlessly smooth, innovative, and comprehensive." Get LitCharts A + Previous Industrialism and Consumption Individuality Theme Analysis Quotes Themes and Colors

  3. Brave New World Quotes by Aldous Huxley

    Happiness is never grand." ― Aldous Huxley, Brave New World tags: happiness 2200 likes Like "If one's different, one's bound to be lonely." ― Aldous Huxley, Brave New World tags: loneliness 2186 likes Like "I want to know what passion is. I want to feel something strongly." ― Aldous Huxley, Brave New World tags: passion 1756 likes

  4. 'Brave New World' Quotes Explained

    Aldous Huxley's classic dystopian novel, Brave New World, deals with issues of technological advancements, sexuality, and individuality in the context of a dehumanizing society. Huxley explores how his characters react to living in a dystopian future society, in which everyone's place is strictly defined.

  5. Society and the Individual in Brave New World

    Home Literature Notes Brave New World Society and the Individual in Brave New World Critical Essays Society and the Individual in Brave New World "Every one belongs to every one else," whispers the voice in the dreams of the young in Huxley's future world — the hypnopaedic suggestion discouraging exclusivity in friendship and love.

  6. The 15 Best Quotes from Brave New World

    1. On danger, freedom and sin "But I don't want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness. I want sin." John the Savage incites chaos when he throws...

  7. The 28 Best Brave New World Quotes

    28 of the best book quotes from Brave New World 01 Share "For in the end, [Huxley] was trying to tell us what afflicted the people in 'Brave New World' was not that they were laughing instead of thinking, but that they did not know what they were laughing about and why they had stopped thinking." Aldous Huxley ᐧ Neil Postman authors Brave New World

  8. 10 Memorable Quotes in Brave New World

    The quotes in ' Brave New World ' are satirical and full of irony and subtly shine a light on the way what, at first glance, seems to be a perfect world is a horrible one. With sharp wit, Aldous Huxley demonstrates a dystopian government executed not with violence and fear but by giving its citizens too much pleasure and making them passive.

  9. Brave New World Quotes: The 50 Best & Most Important Lines

    17. "'What you need is a gramme of soma.' 'All the advantages of Christianity and alcohol; none of their defects. Take a holiday from reality whenever you like, and come back without so much as a headache or a mythology.'". 18. "The mockery made him feel an outsider; and feeling an outsider he behaved like one.".

  10. Brave New World: Important Quotes Explained

    The World State is an enormous system of production and consumption in which humans are turned into machines for further production and consumption. The world "allows" them to be happy by creating a system in which not being happy—by choosing truth over soma—is forbidden. Next section Important Quotes Explained Page 2. PLUS.

  11. Brave New World Quotes and Analysis

    Brave New World, 34. This saying, quoted by Mustapha Mond, instructs his citizens to disregard the painful lessons of history and to ignore the past in order to focus on future progress. Society disregards history because if people understood what came before, they might not be willing to put their trust in science and progress.

  12. Brave New World Revisited Quotes by Aldous Huxley

    Brave New World Revisited Quotes Showing 1-30 of 126. "The real hopeless victims of mental illness are to be found among those who appear to be most normal. "Many of them are normal because they are so well adjusted to our mode of existence, because their human voice has been silenced so early in their lives, that they do not even struggle or ...

  13. Brave New World Quotes

    "Sooo much more helpful than SparkNotes. The way the content is organized and presented is seamlessly smooth, innovative, and comprehensive." Get LitCharts A + Previous Individuality Brave New World Quotes Next Characters Find the Perfect Quote LitCharts makes it easy to find quotes by chapter, character, and theme.

  14. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

    4.0/5 Brave New World By Aldous Huxley Aldous Huxley defies the typical dystopian narrative in 'Brave New World' by portraying a seemingly benign state, making it a unique and popular work of science fiction. Written by Ebuka Igbokwe Bachelor's degree from Nnamdi Azikiwe University.

  15. Brave New World Quotes (51 quotes)

    As Huxley remarked in Brave New World Revisited, the civil libertarians and rationalists who are ever on the alert to oppose tyranny "failed to take into account man's almost infinite appetite for distractions." In 1984, Orwell added, people are controlled by inflicting pain. In Brave New World, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure.

  16. Individualism in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World

    The majority of the main characters in Aldous Huxley's dystopian novel Brave New World make conscious decisions to rebel against the World State that controls them and eventually suffer the consequences of such decisions. Lenina Crowne, the only female protagonist, differs from her male counterparts in that her unorthodox actions are unintentional; while Helmholtz Watson, Bernard Marx, and ...

  17. Brave New World: Helmholtz Watson Quotes

    Here, we begin to see that his problem is talent. Helmholtz's talent for the written word drives him to seek more emotional experience than the World State allows. He is not content to use only the socially useful parts of his talent, "the water that goes […] through the turbines.". Through Helmholtz's story, Brave New World suggests ...

  18. 50 Brave New World Quotes With Page Numbers

    "Ending is better than mending." ~Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Character: Propagando repeated by a voice, Chapter 3, Pages 33, 35 "There was a thing called Heaven; but all the same they used to drink enormous quantities of alcohol."

  19. Brave New World Individualism Quotes

    Brave New World Individualism Quotes. In Brave New World, Aldous Huxley warns of a world, free from individualism with the entire culture contingent on instant gratification and asphyxiating happiness. Looking around in the world today fragments of the dystopian future described by Aldous Huxley exist, slowly changing society into its next ...

  20. Brave New World Helmholtz Watson Quotes Page 1

    Quote 3. "Oh, as far as they go." Helmholtz shrugged his shoulders. "But they go such a little way. They aren't important enough, somehow. I feel I could do something much more important. Yes, and more intense, more violent.

  21. 30 Brave New World Soma Quotes With Page Numbers

    30 Brave New World Soma Quotes With Page Numbers. In Brave New World, 'Soma' is a drug used for societal control, replacing emotions and personal bonds. "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley presents a dystopian future where desire for pleasure trumps free will, individuality, and intellectual pursuit. Soma use in the novel, shows the ...

  22. Brave New World Quotes: Chapter 1

    Chapter 1. For particulars, as every one knows, make for virtue and happiness; generalities are intellectually necessary evils. Not philosophers but fretsawyers and stamp collectors compose the backbone of society. "Ninety-six identical twins working ninety-six identical machines!". The voice was almost tremulous with enthusiasm.

  23. Brave New World: Bernard Marx Quotes

    "I want to feel something strongly." Bernard is dissatisfied with the society of the World State because he wants to feel strong emotions. This makes him different from John and Helmholtz, who want to find truth and beauty. Bernard is not seeking something bigger than himself.