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A Brave New World
It is not hard to believe that unusual people are found when everyone is trained to be the same in every part of life. Bernard, Helmholtz and John, the savages of Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, are three odd characters. “Ninety-six identical twins working ninety-six identical machines!”(18) The director preaches with excitement, as he comments on how everyone is conditioned to like what they are and what they do; thus, creating a world where everyone is happy. But when something has gone wrong with the conditioning of someone, that individual is going to be miserable. Bernard, Helmholtz and John all wish that this “happy” world was different.
Bernard Marx is a short, funny looking man. Bernard does not fit in very well with his peers. He is a highly intelligent Alpha, and part of the higher society, but he is small and looked upon as a deformed Alpha. Being small in the Utopia that he lives in is considered to be wrong and corrupt. Many people believe that too much alcohol was added to his embryo. Bernard likes to be alone and does not play sports like everyone else does. He does not like to take Soma or be a part of any activities so, therefore, he is not happy.
Bernard is full of discontent in a world where everyone is happy. In the beginning the reader is led to believe that Bernard enjoys being a misfit, but later it is found out that he is a very gloomy man. When he returns to his native reserve with John, he is suddenly popular with important people and women. It is not his doings making
him popular, but sadly from his association with John. ‘Bernard was politely listened to, but behind his back people shook their heads. “That young man will come to a bad end,” they said prophesying the more confidently in that they in due coarse see to it that the end was bad, “He won’t find another Savage to help him out another time,” they said. Meanwhile there was a first savage; they were polite.’ (129)
It proves the point that he is a misfit even further when he is shunned from society. Bernard has always been different and his short feeling of popularity proves that he will always be different and looked down on for it. Bernard is not a normal Alpha, but neither is Helmholtz Watson. Helmholtz is different from the average Alpha, although for completely opposite reasons of Bernard. Helmholtz is very successful in sports and sex, but oddly enough he is not pleased with his life. He knows that the world is capable of being much better, capable of greater literature and, most of all, he knows that [next page]