After nearly completing the book Brave New World written by Aldous Huxley I noticed that there are a few similarities between our society and the world Huxley has created. One of the major similarities I noticed was the drug that is given in the book,known as soma, is very similar to drugs that are used and sometimes abused in our society today. Drugs such as marijuana and heroin give people in today’s society a type of high that can help them escape reality and that was the same thing that was going on with the soma in Brave New World. The main difference between our society and the society in Brave New World is that in our society many people are not affected by drugs and do not feel the need to use them, in Brave New World however, almost everyone took the soma, to feel what they thought was sheer happiness or to relieve stress, so nearly all were affected. However, if everyone in our society did begin using drugs would it affect our lives like it does to the characters in the novel? Would we still be able to function as we do now or would the drugs become so addicting that nothing was ever accomplished?
-Kaitlyn Schaper
That is a good question, and I feel as if the issue of drug use to simulate happiness or escape reality is quite evident, despite the fact that it appears that not "many people" in today's society use drugs for such purposes. However, if you observe the fact that there are indeed illegal drugs such as marijuana used to relieve stress and induce a so-called "happiness," what do you make of prescription anti-depressants and medication for conditions such as anxiety and bi-polar disorder?
ReplyDeleteAlthough, this point is also countered but the fact that such conditions were not evident in the society Huxley creates in Brave New World. The soma used in Brave New World was not used to cure major disorders, just a frown, which would be seen as drug abuse in today’s society. The Utopia created by Huxley held a standard of pleasure and happiness that must be upheld for a Utopian society, which brings in the purpose of the soma and the genetic elimination of mental conditions such as depression.
Kaitlyn posed the questions, “If everyone in our society did begin using drugs, would it affect our lives like it does to the characters in the novel? Would we still be able to function as we do now or would the drugs become so addicting that nothing was ever accomplished?”
I, personally, have no idea what would become of our society, because the usage of drugs in the novels differs greatly from the usage of drugs today. In Huxley’s Utopia, a single drug is used to cure any type of odd feeling, but in the world we live in, there are thousands of drugs, and we as a society are much more in touch with our emotions. The different drugs and substances used today to create this sense of relief can become quickly addicting and destructive to the brain and other bodily functions. However, the soma was designed to be used without causing harm to the body or the perfect social structure within the novel, although it seems to be overused. Substances improperly used today, such as marijuana and alcohol, have side effects that the soma does not seem to have on the human body within the novel. When it comes to prescription drugs, such as anti-depressants, the usage is generally regulated to prevent addiction, but cure the conditions for which they were prescribed.
I believe that the usage of drugs to change emotion at will, without prescription or necessity, is not a proper or healthy response to a lack of happiness or overload of stress. A parallel use of drugs can be seen in Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451. In the book, one may remember Mildred, Montag's wife, taking sleeping pills to escape her reality, which can be seen as a form of drug use. Mildred also then overdoses, nearly killing herself. Many other forms of this situation are evident in multiple pieces of literature, and in today’s world. The question asked previously is intriguing, however I do not believe that current society would conform to such forms of drug use entirely.