Brave New World

Aldous Huxley's mind needed to be studied

Interessante esta edição, sem nenhuma frescura hype

Not the easiest read to devour due to its, albeit highly successful, writing style. The scholarly vocabulary of BRAVE NEW WORLD by Aldous Huxley and the initial movie-esque cutting between different scenes enfolding require a slightly higher degree of concentration than with a typical narrative. Once you take the responsibilty of reading this book for what it is, the storyworld is engrossing, and the narrative purely psychotic, with everything being upside down.Remember the party propaganda of 1984, with sayings like, "War is peace," and take another look at Brave New World. The obvious contradictions have now been instilled in humans as infallible truths from birth through dream therapy, shock therapy, and other kinds of neo-Pavlovian experiments as well as caste-creating breeding and stress and chemical modification schemes. Corpsy women are propagated as desireable with as a hidden motto that if it's easier for men to stick it to a corpsy than to one that's fresh, then go for the corpsy delight. Everything in this world is nasty, with the meaning of nasty and clean having been reversed through some kind of cultural predestination scheme. What's nasty for "society" is clean for the savages and vice versa. Either of them function on a lower level than humanity could.As infallible as the new truths have been instilled in humans, as contradictive they feel to those that for any reason of their own choose not to take the government drugs. Even those that take the drugs can be frank about their dislike at times, scaring others not for their own well-being but for that of their friends. As much as the caste system and the drugs and hypnopaedic therapy mean to eradicate all feeling, the foundation for all being being feeling itself means that even at the peak of self-domestication, there's a very strong urge to break free for those that have the slightest irregularity to their behaviors, stepping away from the state machine mindset that most have developed.That little lack of indifference, the tiniest of questions that drive the bigger questions of freedom and identity, are what drive the pivotal characters in Brave New World. What will it take for the little ripples to grow into a wave without the water immediately being dammed? Once we've reached the point of complete self-domestication, is there such a thing as a point of no return? Great story that on the surface leaves no way out.

No se pudo cargar el contenido.

Viene mal cortado y vi las reseñas una vez que me llegó. Aparentemente todos los mandan así…

Pros: A classic that holds up, font and text is clearly readable, the introduction is brief an concise.Cons: From the pictures on Amazon page you cannot clearly tell that the illustration on the hard cover is not engraved into the book itself but just a dusk jacket. I have not found anything in description on the Amazon page that specifies otherwise . For a 90th Anniversary Edition I expected a more premium care/build of the book.

Uno de los mejores libros de todos los tiempos. Universal, vigente, crudo y bello.

El producto llegó en excelentes condiciones

El libro es muy bueno, y llegó en perfectas condiciones. Para los que dicen que las hojas están mal cortadas, es porque el libro está hecho para que las tenga así, busquen "deckle-edge" y verán que muchos libros de pasta dura vienen así. Si las hojas no son de su agrado entonces recomiendo que se compren la versión con la tapa suave.

Satisfecho con el libro, ahora a disfrutar su lectura.

El libro viene mal cortado. Se ve y se siente corriente.

Lectura obligada por ser un clásico. Uno de los libros que ayudan a cuestionarse el cómo se están haciendo las cosas y las consecuencias que esto puede llegar a tener en un fururo.

Would a future totalitarian society be all that bad if every single person - from the day they were born - was truly happy with their lot in life? That is the question Brave New World asks, and Aldous Huxley leaves it up to the reader to decide the answer.I've re-read this book several times and each time I'm glad I did. That is because it is an enjoyable story, first and foremost. The characters have sufficient depth, the locales are peculiar and attention-grabbing, and the underlying message is enough to make you stop and think.Brave New World revolves around three main characters. First, there's Bernard Marx, an elite "Alpha Plus" who is uncertain about how he fits into society. Then, there is Mustapha Mond, the World Controller for Western Europe, a man who reads The Holy Bible and Shakespeare, despite his society's ban on these "pornographic books". Finally, we have John (named John Savage when he visits Bernard's world), the son of two World State citizens raised in the remote hostility of a Savage Reservation. The interactions and thoughts of these three characters forms the skeleton of the book, and it is through their eyes that we view the World State of the future. The reader learns about how babies are "decanted" in the future, how they are bred and conditioned for their role in society, how entertainment plays a role in keeping them happy, and how unhappiness can be quickly whisked away by a gramme of Soma, a powerful drug that has no debilitating side-effects. Of course, it would be easy for the author to jab his finger at you from the pages and scream "SEE?!? SEE?!?! See what a society without freedom looks like? Isn't it horrible?", but he doesn't. In fact, the world of Year of Our Ford 632 doesn't seem so bad at all when you consider disease, war, and unhappiness have all been snuffed out of existence.But at what cost?Midway through the book, we meet John. Biologically, a son of the World State, but philosophically a student of the old religions and old literature of the old world. But don't misunderstand. John is not necessarily the book's "everyman". Many of his emotions and actions (like self-flagellation) are still foreign to a modern reader. Bernard - who has at this point accepted that he is "different" compared to his fellow World State-ers - brings John to his home to show him off to his peers. Naturally, many aspects of the World State are appalling to John, and this conflict continues all the way to the book's conclusion.Something I found remarkable is that the author, Huxley, gives us plenty of chances to sympathize with many of the various characters. Bernard Marx is not the "good guy" nor the "bad guy". In another story, the World Controller Mond might have been the evil villain trying to destroy any freedom, and John Savage might have been the passionate hero who wins the pretty girl and ultimately brings that freedom to society. But none of this occurs. The characters in Brave New World are just people, thrust into a world of perfect happiness and perfect harmony, and they each react in their own way. Sure, it's cute to see how the author envisioned the future, and perhaps a bit scary to see some of his "predictions" coming true, but that isn't what makes this book great. What makes it great is that it allows the reader to come to his/her own conclusions. To you, perhaps the World State seems terrifying, or maybe it seems like a nice place to live. To you, perhaps John Savage is the hero, or perhaps the logic and compassion in Mustapha Mond's final words and final actions resonate with you more. Maybe you can relate best to Bernard Marx's flawed personality. I suppose the choice is really yours, because Huxley doesn't make that choice for you.A lot of people say that the story is about entertainment media taking over our society, or about drugs, or about a controlling government, or about morality. I don't think Huxley intended the book to be exclusively about any one of those things, although of course the book makes a statement about them all. As stated above, Brave New World lets you draw your own conclusions about the World State instead of trying to grab you by the collar while screaming "SEE?!? SEE?!? See how horrible a world full of drugs and genetic manipulation would be?"Now, I rate this book a full 5 stars, but here is the "but..." of the review. For the majority of the book, we are treated to a fascinating romp through future science, future sociology, and future beliefs. However, toward the end of the book, John and Mustapha Mond engage in a very lengthy conversation about society and morals and God. To me, I really enjoyed this part. It was a great answer to my lingering question of "Why did society become this way?". To others, it might come off as a preachy, show-offy exposition from Huxley's own heart. Mustapha makes a point about human psychology, and John counters with Shakespeare. Mustapah points to the World State's "happiness", and John counters with God. Mustapha talks about bliss, and John talks about struggling for joy. I enjoyed it, but you might not, especially since it breaks away from the overall pace and feel of the rest of the book.Nevertheless, this book is well worth reading. It can be finished by a diligent reader in a weekend, and it contains a lot of thought-provoking ideas that will stick with you long after the final page.