Brave New World- Henry Foster “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley, is a story that vividly depicts a society full of stifling inhumanity. It is a world where every ounce of importance is laid on stability and uniformity among the inhabitants of the new world excluding the Savage Reservation. The World Controllers created an artificial society after a dramatic decline of the human population after a devastating war. A society that is engineered to run smoothly because of hynopaedic training and a complex caste system placing Alpha-Plus individuals at the top of the intelligence and stature scale and adversely Epsilon-Minus at the bottom.
At the beginning of the book we are introduced to Henry Foster, a perfectly conventional Alpha male. Henry works at the Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Center in charge of maximizing the number of embryos each ovary produces, and is very proud of the work that he does. He does everything he is expected to do and does it well; in every way he is an ideal citizen of the World State. Henry is a model of hynopaedic conditioning, following all the ideals of the “Brave New World.” Filling his leisure time with sports and casual sex and is highly regarded at work for being an efficient and intelligent. He casually discusses his sexual encounters with his occasional partner Lenina with his co-workers. This casual attitude regarding Lenina infuriates the jealous Bernard.
Lenina shows weakness towards Henry, she slips into a frame of mind where she only desires to date him. Whereas Henry shows that he remains unattached by discussing her to his co-workers, “Oh, she’s a splendid girl. Wonderfully pneumatic. I’m surprised you haven’t had her.” In “Brave New World” early hynopaedic conditioning teaches individuals their social rank and how they should interact with other caste members. Commonly Alphas associate with other Alphas but in Henry and Bernard’s case their character traits conflict and therefore they do not get along. The main cause for their conflict is due to competition against each other for Lenina and social status.
The Essay on Brave New World Sexual Freedom Lenina
Sexual Behaviour as the Means Order Sexual behaviour has been changed and moulded into a revolution over the last 100 years. The changes in our societies have allowed the freedom of public displays of affection. Woman have also played a large part of the sexual revolution. They have gone from doing all that men want to asking men on dates. With this sexual freedom problems have arrived. Rape and ...
Their clashing personalities are due to the fact that Henry abides by all the rules that the World Controllers put in place, whereas Bernard apposes most of the same rules that Henry agrees with. Henry is tall and handsome the common attributes of an Alpha but Bernard is unusually small for an Alpha, it is rumored that it was caused by alcohol in his blood surrogate. For this reason Henry act as though he was in a higher caste than Bernard. Although Henry is not a major character in “Brave New World,” he does contribute to the theme in two separate ways. He introduces Lenina to the fact that she is different from most others; she acquires the need to be emotional and rebel against her hynopaedic conditioning. Henry also contributes in Bernard’s insecurities, lack of confidence leading to an increased anxiety about social rejection.
This rejection leads Bernard to be an outsider; he harbors pent-up anger and resentment to Henry. Henry’s role in “Brave New World” clearly shows a society of flawless people and also outcast society of rebellions against “Brave New World.” Henry also helps explain the working of the Hatchery, show Lenina’s sex life, and explore the difference between Bernard and the “normal” people of the New World.
