Portraying Utopias In Literature - Term Paper Example

 Portraying Utopias In Literature Oscar Wilde once said, “A map of the world that does not include Utopia is not worth even glancing at, for it leaves out the one country at which Humanity is always landing.” - Soul of Man under Socialism, 1891 This quote in essence, depicts the very nature of a utopia. Utopias are ideally perfect places, not in reality, but in one’s map of imagination. It is not surprising, therefore to link utopias with fiction. Peter Firchow’s Modern Utopia Fiction, is perhaps one of the notable attempts at presenting utopias as fictional elements in literary dimension. The very term “utopia” was first used by Sir Thomas Moore in his novel Utopia, which presented these ideal places only in the realms of social science. Moore (1516) discussed the distinguishing features of the Utopian way of life as being synonymous to the “perfect” way of life. There was an absence of private property and instead the community followed a life of communal ownership. This did not allow for competition; the economic activities of production, consumption were only based on necessities. There was absence of stature differences and materialism. Everyone worked in harmony and equally. There was an expectation from the government to operate on a system which was transparent and accountable. Most importantly, every individual had the right to life, liberty and equality. Morally and socially the citizens were in peace and content with their lifestyles (Sacks & Robinsons 1999, p.2). More, as a social scientist attempted to describe the above almost uniquely “perfect” features as fundamental characteristics of utopian societies. However, in more realistic settings, the utopian societies which manifested themselves in the American way of life were seen as being egalitarian and numbingly uniform pushing individuals towards an unfulfilling role of American consumerism; this failed to promote a sense of individual liberty, autonomy and a gratifying sense of freedom among individuals. Utopias, therefore, began to be seen as places of dismay and were dreaded rather than being looked forward too (Firchow, 2007). Therefore, it was not long before the idea of anti-utopia or dystopia came in to the picture. Dystopia is the account of a futuristic place which depicts life very differently from a utopian model. It does not have all the idealistic notions of Utopia. In its purest sense it may also be considered a bad place which may have showed utopian tendencies at one point of time. These kinds of utopias which ultimately turned into dystopias are important because of the satire they provide on the present social conditions of humans. However, the recent concentration on it being more of a “bad place” was essentially driven because if its “racist and anti-democratic tendencies” (Firchow, 2007). The utopian and dystopian models have many differences in the way life is depicted between them. One theme, however, which is predominant in both models, is the use of technology. Huxley’s Brave New World, Well’s When The Sleeper Wakes and Iron Murdoch’s The Bell are some examples of books which deal with the future use of technology by humans. Technology is seen as something which is to be looked upon with dismay because it has the ability of leaving people totally dependent on it and creating an artificial way of life. This notion is depicted in the anti-utopia of Well’s The Time Machine where technological process has virtually made physical work redundant to the extent that people do not have any idea what to do with their lives anymore (Firchow, 2007). One may perhaps infer that the use of technology may even prove advantageous. Using technological advancements humans could be genetically “conditioned” to reduce the effect of imperfect human nature. Such use of technology was perhaps most clearly seen in Huxley’s Brave New World. However, exercising control and dominance through the use of technology would also mean limiting an individual’s freedom of being creative; restricting the individual’s freedom of thought. This is because when technology becomes so ingrained in human life, people have no option but to resort to the mandatory “leisure” that is set for them in utopian models. When they have nothing to do but spend time in leisure, this can not only lead to boredom but as mentioned above, it can also restrict intellectual growth. Individuals would not be constantly challenged and their creative abilities would not be usefully exploited (Firchow, 2007). One notable difference between the utopias and dystopias stem from the way ethics is interpreted in the two models. In the utopian model, the way of a good life is determined by the amount of happiness. If happiness outweighs unhappiness then an individual has essentially experienced a good life. However, in the dystopian model the intensity and quality of a good experience carries more weight than the mere amount of happiness. In this kind of ethics which the dystopian model associates with, a brief and tragic life is more superior to a long happy one. Romeo and Juliet would perhaps be the perfect example of such a theoretical implication (Firchow, 2007). The human nature is another area where utopia and dystopia writers agree or disagree on. The essential question of whether human nature is good or bad is replaced by the concept that human nature is a product of social conditioning and thus is malleable and possesses the ability to being impressionable. Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World and Skinners Walden H deal with this subject rigorously. In dystopian literature, particularly in Huxley’s Brave New World, people are seen to be controlled, laws are enforced to see that the society is following a systematic code of conduct and human nature is essentially “conditioned”. Also, because in such a society there is so much control over the citizens, the government is very unlikely to experience any upheavals or social riots which may endanger the image of the society. The depiction of social experiments are seen to be more “objective” in dystopias than utopias and this is evident with literary works like Brave New World and even George Orwell’s 1984 (Firchow, 2007). In order to give a greater detail of the dystopian society, the rest of the paper would discuss Aldous Huxley anti-utopia, lay down the implications of such a society and analyze the book in a literary dimension. Though the term “dystopia” has been thought to be initially coined by Julianne More in the 1960’s, it was with dystopian literary works like Huxley’s Brave New World and Well’s The Time Machine published, that a comprehensive account was given of such a futuristic place. In the Brave New World, Huxley talks about a complete authoritarian rule by a small elite minority who imposes its power and rule on the majority through manipulative and mind altering techniques. The fast paced development in the reproduction technologies and sleep learning techniques alter the human mind, condition and compel them to bow down to the higher power. The sleeping techniques also condition the people to live in harmony with the people of their own castes, and not look upon other higher castes. Huxley uses characters in his book to depict the interplay of his futuristic theories and its impact on the society in the World State (Huxley, 1932). With his book, Brave New World Revisited (1958), Huxley revisits the world of his former novel. The idea behind writing Brave New World Revisited was to assess if the predictions made in Brave New World, were possible and if so how much of them were actually coming true. Thirty years after writing the Brave New World, Huxley came to the conclusion that what he had depicted in his first novel were not only in his present day society but at the pace at which these predictions were coming true was quicker than he had expected. In the first chapter of the novel Brave New World Revisited, Huxley speaks of the overburdening population which is growing at the pace which will outstrip the natural resources of the earth in no time. This, he proposes, does not only endanger the whole notion of democracy but is dangerous to individual liberty as well. He goes in to depth of biological instincts which will let such a huge population flourish. In his opinion, birth control methods are difficult to implement because the opposition to these method roots from religious discourses, which are a controversial area to control and subjugate people to. Therefore, the falling death rates and stable or high birth rates plunges the numbers to an ever high figure. In less than a century, the human population would double and put constraint on the natural resources. When this happens and when the economic situation of the country faces serious challenges, there is no option but for the central government to step in and control these activities and people. The central government imposes more rules and restrictions and more power is concentrated in its hands. The result looks similar to what people suffered under the World State. (Huxley, 1958) This type of situation could also be reflected in Anthony Burgess’s The Wanting Seed. In analyzing the chapter, it is crucial to consider the time period in which Huxley wrote his second book Brave New world Revisited. The popular culture of the 1950’s was the time of experimentation for the American masses. According to Young, N & W (2004) it was precisely in the 1950’s that the word “Baby Boom” evolved and having babies and reproducing were seen as activities which gave one the ultimate form of happiness. According to the statistics in this era, 3.6 million babies were born in the year of 1950 and the figure increased to 4.3 million at the end of the decade. Therefore, it was very understandable on part of Huxley to show a concern on the growing human numbers in his Brave New World Revisited. Also, this was the era which gave rise to the “Beat Generation” a group of writers who became prominent for their drug experimentation including Huxley himself, sexual promiscuity and discard for conventions. One such writer was Williams Burroughs who wrote his first novel, Junky, on the life of a heroin addict, and Naked Lunch on the sexual promiscuousness of society. Therefore, what Huxley suggested in Brave New World Revisited in the Chapter “Chemical Persuasion, was that the mere availability of these drugs could be harmful for individuals, dictators could make use of these drugs to blindly compel individuals in following them and bowing down to their authority (Huxley, 1958). All of the above features of the society in Huxley’s time, compelled him to write as a forewarning to the present generation, the frightening encounters of the future. His book Brave New World Revisited was therefore, more based on non-fictitious data and theories and was not a science fiction novel like his first book. It can be said that Huxley’s attempt in coming up with technological devices which would control the population came from the concern that over population would increase social and economic disparity as seen from the above described world events. Therefore, in his defense, employing the population control methods that he talks about in length in his novel, were only a practical and realistic methods of stopping the ever-increasing population. If we compare it to how the Utopian people had a sense of controlling over-population, Huxley’s proposed method becomes even more practical and makes more sense. In the novel, Utopia (1516), Thomas More explained that if over-population ever became a problem for the utopian society it could be controlled by territorial expansion and starting new colonies by warfare (Jutte, 1980). This point of view was of course entirely sociological and did not see utopias from a fictional and literary dimension. It can be argued, therefore, that to some extent the Utopians had a very simplistic and narrow approach to the problem of overpopulation. Also, they were not fully aware of the significance of the solution they proposed. Territorial expansion would not only destroy the Utopian model but would yield additional economic and psychological problems for the society. The dystopian model, compared to this, as already mentioned above, provided a more crucial idea of the problem and solutions which would not have as detrimental effects as the solutions proposed by the Utopians. Also, Huxley in his novel, Brave New World Revisited, discusses the problem of overpopulation in relative terms. He suggests that overpopulation becomes a problem in relation to the Earth’s resources. Therefore, he takes into consideration the economic dimension as well, when writing about the problem. The utopians do not discuss this problem in relation to economic resources. This is quite understandable as More’s Utopia was written when geographical discoveries were still being made, thus More took an expanding view of the world whereas Huxley’s view was of a shrinking world. In interpreting the novel, however, it is important that Huxley be critically analyzed as an author. Huxley’s background can be an important determinant in gaining a broader view of what he wrote and why he wrote. As a child Huxley had always wanted to become a scientist when he grew up. However, he was detected with a disease which almost left him blind. Huxley’s brother, however was a scientist and taught him about science and technology. This coupled with his father being a writer, gave Huxley an unusual combination. Thus, when one sees his attempt at writing the Brave New World, it does make more sense. According to Rita (2004), it was an attempt on Huxley’s part to write a science fiction novel which noted his love for science and made published him as a literary writer as well. Having said that, one can also infer that Huxley was no scientist, therefore much of what he wrote in novel the Brave New World was based on his limited scientific knowledge. This is however, not to say that all science fiction novels are based on the natural sciences. Also, Huxley was a satirist, he wrote his novel as a satire to the large number of utopian novels that were coming about in his age. Therefore, inferring that his only motive in writing such novels was to practice his satirist style can be undermining the essentiality of his novel (Nugel, Rasch & Wagner 2007, p.15). One can also say that, though Huxley had an all-encompassing knowledge, he took a very negative approach to human nature. In the novel, he was determined to lead people in destroying themselves and had lesser belief in the good of mankind. Additionally, the writing style of Huxley is at times difficult and structured with complex ideas. Because Huxley was considered an upper – class writer, it was his assumption that people could be easily acknowledged about his complex ideas or phrases. This may have been a criticism of Huxley as an author and his writing style (Astrachan, n.d) Brave New World, in comparison, is relatively simple, but is not the most typical novel by Huxley. Huxley’s novel, Brave New World, although a breakthrough novel of the 20th century, can be criticized for some of the overly fantastical predictions that it bears. It should be more importantly known as a literary work which it is rather than viewing it from a sociological dimension. There is a totalitarian government which only controls through psychological and physical altering (sleep teaching and infant conditioning) and the citizens give up their individual freedom for the liberty and security under the state. The fast paced technological advancement has only been talked about in negative terms so that people will become slaves to technology and helplessly independent on it. We can see in today’s society that technology has been used which has bettered human conditions. However, the novel at the same time is the criticism of the modern vices of the society which could pose as threat. Therefore, in that aspect, the novel does a good job in forewarning the present day citizens of a frightening future. Brave New World is often compared to Orwell’s 1984. When compared with George Orwell’s novel 1984, another dystopian novel, there are many different viewpoints which come into play. These can be directly contrasted with the Brave New World. 1984, depicts a totalitarian form of government where pain and punishment are inflicted to conform the individual under the higher authority. In the Brave New World, Huxley already perceived that punishment would not be the most effective form of coercion but instead reinforcement was the way to constant obedience (Newman 1992, p.62). Both of these novels, however, were inspired by the after math of the Wars and the inconsistencies found in the capitalist and the communism systems. In the book, Brave New World Revisited, though Huxley’s tone is more serious and less satirical, it is important to analyze Huxley’s discussion in a more critical manner. Firstly and most importantly, if the novel is seen purely from a scientific point of view, it may not be fully appreciated. It is the realm of fiction and Huxley’s imagination which drive the book in the first place. Additionally, much of Huxley’s discourse appeals to emotions rather than the intellect by deploying mechanism of fear and hate. Though some argue that anti-utopia fictions are more in the form of a sermon; they concentrate more on describing rather than doing and thus only possess an intellectual appeal to them (Firchow, 2007). Moreover, in presenting his novel, Huxley accepts case studies on face value. Although Huxley is scientifically trained, he is not entirely an expert and therefore does not have any alter explanations to present (Newman 1992, p.63). Both Brave New World and Brave New World Revisited provide a very stark reality in to the future of the society, the books are satire and should be read keeping this in mind. The most important consideration to be taken is the context of the time period that Huxley wrote these novels. The social, cultural, economic systems of the society were in decadence and these novels were a satire and mockery on these societies. In doing so, the novels in themselves forced the literary writers of that age and period to idealness of utopias to the frightening themes underlying dystopias. In conclusion, I think both models, if slightly modified can be seen as good models for adoption by society. The Utopian model is better in some respects but not perfect. In the utopian model, people will have the right to life, liberty and security but as discussed above will be intellectually weak. The human nature is seen important to both dystopia and utopia. The dystopian model, however concentrates more on the negativity of human nature and thus sees systematic control of people as a valid option. This is portrayed in various novels; Huxley’s Brave New World being one of them. Additionally, in a utopia model, people are thought to be given equal opportunities so that there is no notion of competition but this uniformity becomes boring and unchallenging. An important point that Firchow (2007) stresses on is that utopias should no longer be defined as places which are attainable only outside the realms of human history, but as places which become increasingly real everyday with believable characters. Thus, dystopian writers should take this notion in account and not write about how individuals can adapt and fit into these pre-existing notions of utopias, but instead take a more focused approach and write about the possible creation of new ideal or near to ideal places (Firchow, 2007). However, Firchow (2007) also states that when utopias began to come to “approximate reality” in different parts of the world, especially the US and Soviet Union, the writers started to concentrate on the “fictional” aspect of utopias; they started giving weight to fictional features of utopias in order to emphasize the failure of such places to achieve their goals. However, if we treat utopias and dystopias as models and not as a criticism of the existing patterns, with slight modification, it is possible that they become desirable and workable models for adoption for modern society. References Astrachan. A., n.d. Brave New World Barron's Notes.[Online] Available from [Accessed on 21 December 2010]. Firchow, P., 2007. Modern Utopian Fictions from H.G Wells to Iron Murdoch. Catholic University of America Press. Jutte. R., 2008. Contraception: A history. Cornwall: MPG Books Ltd. Huxley, A., 1932. Brave New World. UK: Chatto and Windus. Huxley, A., 1958. Brave New World Revisited. US: Haper & Row. Newman, B., 1992. Brave New World Revisited: Huxley's Evolving View of Behaviorism. The Behavior Analyst. 15(2). pp 63-69. Nugel, Rasch & Wagner. G., ed., 2007. Aldous Huxley, man of letters: thinker, critic and artist : proceedings of the Third International Aldous Huxley Symposium. Germany: LIT Verlag Munster. Sacks, D. & Robinson, R., ed., 1999. Utopia: Sir Thomas More. Bedford: Palgrave Macmillan. Wilde, O., 1981. The Soul of Man Under Socialism.[Online]Available from http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/wilde-oscar/soul-man/index.htm> [Accessed on 21 December 2010]. Young, N. & Young, W., 2004. The 1950’s. Westport: The Greenwood Publishing Group. Read More