John and Linda - Not from the World State

BNW Notes

John and Linda - not from the World State.

John: attractive, fluent in English, Linda's son.

Linda: exiled from the World State for being pregnant (reminder: babies are from test tubes, there are no families, thus having children naturally - "viviparous" is considered obscene), the Director's (DHC, or Thomas, or "Tomakin") former lover; she and Thomas (like Bernard and Lenina) had come to the Malpais Reservation for a trip; former worker the Directory of Hatchery and Conditioning Centre.

Chapter 6 - Bernard and Lenina go on their first date; Bernard doesn't want the "typical" date (e.g. soma, sex, etc.) Instead, he wants to walk and talk. Lenina is confused by this.

p. 76 - Some men were describing Bernard as a "rhinoceros...However, I think [Bernard] is pretty harmless'". Henry is rationalizing why Bernard is so different from most men.

There is a push to exile Bernard to Iceland, because he's not sociable.

Three Different Settings in BNW - all in AF 632 (in the future)

1. London - the central setting; restricted - people are not allowed to do very much; people are controlled by the government - through soma, hypnopaedia, distraction (e.g. the Feelies, the sports, the Solidarity Service, etc.); well-organized; stable - there's no war or real conflict; the caste system allows for everyone to know their place - their identity is clear; the Hatchery enables absolute control of the population - therefore, resources are not wasted or overrun.

2. Iceland - an exiled community of "odd" people - people who don't fit. (We later find out that this is a community of intellectuals and artists.)

3. Malpais Reservation - note: in the book, the term "Savage" is used. However, by modern standards, this word is considered offensive and outdated. Thus, we will use the term "Malpais" when referring to the Reservation. This is an area owned and operated by the Malpais people. They have chosen to live outside of the World State. Why, given what we know about the rest of the world state, might the Malpais choose to live separate from society?

Character Sketches

Bernard

·  shorter than average Alphas - rumoured to have had alcohol been put in his blood

·  likes to be alone - Bernard "spends most of his time by himself - alone" (38).

·  enjoys long walks and talking - very different from the rest of society

·  smart person (e.g. he recongnises that the World State has serious problems)

·  Alpha Plus - top of the social pyramid

·  social outcast - "Bernard hated them, hated them. [Benito Hoover and Henry Foster] were two, they were larger, they were strong" (40).

·  wants real passion - not fake love

·  considered an odd person - Lenina says that Bernard is "odd, odd...so odd indeed" (75).

·  specialist in hypnopaedia (sleep teaching)

·  not a good friend - he doesn't help John and Helmholtz during the soma revolution when they're arrested the police. Bernard is selfish; thinking only of himself, he tries to run away.

·  He began to become that which he hated; for instance, he took soma on his date with Lenina and later after he becomes popular and starts "dating" lots of women.

Lenina

·  Beta-plus woman

·  vaccination (nurse?) at the Central London Hatcheries and Conditioning

·  She's a "healthy and virtuous (follows society's rules) English girl" (55). Model citizen.

·  She is described often as "pneumatic". This word has several meanings: "beautiful", "airy" or "airheaded", and it also relates to machines.

·  dated Benito Hoover for 4 months - very unusual in the World State.

·  minor and relatively static character

·  tried to seduce John - "You silly boy..I wanted you so much...if you wanted me too, why didn't you say so?" (169-170)

·  p. 80 - Bernard says that "[Lenina] thinks of herself that way...she doesn't mind being meat." He is saying that Lenina doesn't mind giving herself sexually to everybody, like an animal.

·  HOWEVER, perhaps she secretly does value love. For example, she dated Benito for a long time. Also, she works hard to seduce John.

·  she takes her pain and fear away by using soma.

Helmholtz

·  Alpha lecturer at the College of Emotional Engineering

·  prime example of his class/caste

·  HOWEVER - he feels his work is empty and lacks meaning.

·  loves writing - wishes he had something real to write about

·  not as fully developed as some of the other characters - minor character

·  character foil for Bernard and John

·  for Bernard, Helmholtz is everything he wishes he could be: strong, intelligent, handsome, successful with women, etc.

·  he recognises his culture is shallow

·  similar to John: both love poetry, both critical of the World State, etc.

·  different from John: Helmholtz thinks that romantic love is funny, unlike John.

·  p. 57 - "He was a powerfully built man..quick in movements...beautifully-shaped head...Alpha-plus." - physically very handsome

·  p. 60 - talking to Bernard about language: "Words can be like x-rays...how to write piercingly." This shows that Helmholtz, as a college lecturer, knows that power of language to manipulate and shape society's thoughts. Thus, he is a powerful figure in society.

·  p. 160-162 - Helmholtz' view on Romeo and Juliet and mothers and fathers, romantic love, etc - he still doesn't believe in veering from his society's beliefs. This, perhaps, shows a limitation in his character: he can't accept the idea of romantic love. Why might this aspect of society's values be a challenge for Helmholtz, versus Bernard?

John

·  optimistic to see the World State at first

·  raised on the Malpais Reservation - therefore, he believed in many of the Malpais values such as marriage, monogamy, romantic love, and family.

·  loves literature - specifically Shakespeare (Romeo and Juliet, The Tempest, Hamlet, Othello)

·  infatuated with Lenina - he doesn't really know her, but is physically drawn to her and justifies that attraction by saying he's in love with her

·  perceived as a circus freak in the World State because of his difference

·  outcast in Malpais. Why? He's White (i.e. he's not "ethnically" Malpais), his mother's behaviour (i.e. she doesn't follow or ultimately respect the Malpais values, as evidenced by sleeping with the women's husbands), he doesn't have a father

·  dynamic - started to hate the World State the longer he was in it

·  respects the Malpais culture and follows its traditions. For example, he cleanses himself, flagellates (whips) himself when he goes against Malpais values by sleeping with Lenina, takes soma, etc), and ultimately probably commits suicide because of shame.

·  very smart, thoughtful, and questions society

·  "'But do you like being slaves?...Do you like being babies?...Grief and remorse...compassion were all forgotten. Don't you want to be a free man?...He began throwing soma..."(186) - This quote shows how John has changed, of how he spoke so highly of the World State and how, at this point in the novel, he is disilllusioned.

·  despises or hates Lenina at the end of the novel -"Strumpet!...He was lashing at her with his whip of small cords" (227)

·  values monogamy and marriage - "How much I love you, Lenina...in Malpais, people get married" (167)

Satire and Irony