Happiness In Brave New World Essay

How does Huxley associate ideas of happiness with consumption and a society's well-being? In the twisted era of Brave New World, Huxley has created what seems to be a false symbol of universal happiness. In Brave New World it is suggested that the price of universal happiness will be achieved with the sacrifice of major treasured aspects within our culture, such as: family, freedom, love, childhood, and home. Happiness in this dystopian novel is achieved through the mass consumption of producer goods. While some people would argue that true happiness comes from internal pleasure, rather than material possessions; Huxley presents us a society that solely bases its well-being on the feeling of pleasure associated with the consumption of materials.
Huxley’s use of "Since we are not solely material creatures, it is a mistake to place all our hopes for happiness on external development alone. The key is to develop inner peace.” The quote by Dalai Lama is contradictory to the beliefs expressed in the novel. Huxley’s interplay on the novel makes it clear to the reader that there is a sense of universal happiness among citizens of society which is obtained by obscure government involvement. This manipulation enforces an entire population to become fixated on the fact that the more you are consuming, the happier you will be. This reliance on things like the drug soma, used to alter feelings and allow a mindless escape from reality, enables a community to dissociate unpleasant thoughts, feelings, and emotions with the simplicity of one dose to bring about inner happiness which is arguably not a true sense of inner happiness and peace referred to in the quote. In Brave New World happiness is used a means of control for the government on the population.
By being hatched, humans have no real connection to motherhood, or being born, or growing up in a family with parents experiencing a “normal” childhood. This method created by the government has created a society in which people have no real connection to anything, this can be raised to debate; however, it does create a community in which people have no true reason to be emotionally distraught. People are literally created to carry out one job and love doing it for their whole lives. The people are so manipulated by the government that the off time they do get is for the main purpose of pleasure, the people are not allowed to love, they have sex with anyone for pleasure, they purchase equipment for sport, travel at cost, or they consume soma which is a direct link to the so called happiness that they thrive for. Life is solely for working and pleasure and nobody questions this way of life, citizens are as we know “happy.” Even the process of dying is dictated by the government so that there is no grieving process or sadness with death, it is simply something that happens and because society is not allowed to become emotionally attached to anything or anyone, it is a process that minimally affects citizens. By giving people the desire of happiness they are able to manipulate how people will attain this desire and because of the parameters set up during childhood and through
carefully sought out manipulation techniques, people do not question the ways of the government. If citizens are not allowed to feel emotions than the people are prone to a blind happiness in which they are only aroused by pleasure, entertainment, and internal factors. John The Savage is Huxley’s way of showing the reader that the Brave New World does have its flaws. The characters perspective on the two different worlds helps us to analyze the false sense of universal happiness that people in society have.

In conclusion Huxley does a good job of establishing a basis for the reader of the perceived happiness that citizens in the Brave New World feel.