Saturday 15 November 2008

Reading assignment 1: chapters 1-3

1. Explain the processes of both the "Hatchery" and the "Conditioning Center." Include definitions for any of the terminology. What are the names for the five categories of people? . The Hatchery is just what it sounds like: a place to hatch eggs. In this story, the eggs they are hatching are those of human beings. About 96 embryos are produced from a single egg, meaning that there are 96 identical humans.
The Conditioning Center is where those recently formed eggs go to be conditioned. They go about conditioning by using shock therapy along with hypnopaedia in order to make every person belong in their caste. By doing this, each person is happy with their position in life, or at least they think they are.

2. What might be annoying about the Director's and Mr. Foster's explanations?
Their explanations may be annoying to the reader because they talk about our current society and culture as if it is inferior to theirs.

3. In what way is the Bokanovsky process a major instrument of social stability?
It gives the government control of the number of people in the world and in each caste.

4. In what way is Huxley's presentation of the Director satirical?
The director often ridicules traditions, ideas and other things that we have and go by now.

5. In this World State, what is the primary function of The Hatchery and Conditioning Center? . Their primary function is to create the right number and kind of people in each caste to create stability in the community.

6. What seems to be a problem the society has "all but solved"?
They've "all but solved" the maturation process because they want people to mature as soon as possible but if its too early, they aren't smart enough.

7. As Huxley looks at these principles, what does he see for the future?
8. Explain the motto "Community, Identity, Stability."
The community has stability because of the caste system, which is their identity.

9. What are people giving up to achieve these goals?
People are giving up their ability to make choices because they can't think for themselves.

10. How is Huxley mocking religion?
He's replaced the idea of worshiping a god with worshiping a man. In this case, that man is Henry Ford, inventor of the assembly line. Cutting all the tops off of crosses to make a 'T' as in Ford's Model 'T' is one example of how he mocks current religions.

11. Who are Henry Foster and Lenina Crowne?
Lenina is an alpha who sometimes wonders why people aren't supposed to be in relationships with just one person but she is easily convinced to believe it.
Henry Foster is the Alpha that Lenina dated for a few months.
12. Why can hypnopaedia be used to inculcate more beliefs and emotional attitudes but cannot be used to learn science?
It makes people remember and memorize the things they hear, but since they don't have the ability to think for themselves, they can't make sense of it.

13. Near the end of Chapter Two, what does Huxley state is the aim of the new world's conditioning?



14. Huxley has some fun with names. Note for example, the allusions of Polly Trotsky, Bernard Marx, and Lenina; however the World Controller's name, Mustapha Mond, has no reference to a real person. What does that name suggest to you?
Mond means 'world' and he is in charge of the world state.

15. What is meant by the paragraph following "History is bunk"?

The past doesn't matter because it is inferior to their ways and their is no point in learning about it.

16. What about the population did Huxley get wrong?


17. Huxley seems to be using the dialogues of Lenina, Fanny, Bernard, and Henry to comment on the lecture or commentary of Mond. What contradictions do you see between what Mond says and what the others are expressing?

Mond is saying the things he thinks while Lenina, Fanny, Bernard and Henry are just repeating what they've been conditioned to think and say.

18. Why do people in this new world need soma?

They don't know how to handle strong emotions, and usually emotions lead to thinking about why you're feeling it, but they're not supposed to think for themselves.

19. What do you notice about the shifting of scenes and speakers?
It is very quick and abrupt and you can't tell who is speaking, especially since they all have the same things to say.

20. How do the Controllers of the new world define happiness?

21. Why does so much effort go into conditioning people to be consumers? What aspect of his own society is Huxley satirizing?
As long as people keep buying things, people have jobs. This ensures stability.



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