Brave New World : Pre-Reading Background Knowledge The World State The vast majority of the population is unified under “the World State” An eternally peaceful, stable, global society Goods and resources are plentiful because the world’s population is permanently limited to no more than two billion people Everyone is happy There is no war or crime

The World State uses a caste system to organize its citizens: a ranking system that divides citizens into classes with some at the top, some in the middle, and some at the bottom Social Caste System in the World State “Normal” reproduction methods have been done away with- babies are not created through having sex Babies are decanted (sperm and egg are poured together) and raised in Hatcheries and Conditioning Centers

Caste Divisions Alphas: the highest class Allowed to develop naturally in their “decanting bottles” in the Hatchery Betas, Gammas, Deltas, and Epsilons: the lower classes in descending order These lower castes have chemicals added to their decanting bottles to cause arrested development in intelligence or physical growth The caste system provides NO opportunity for social mobility- if you are born a Delta, you’ll die a Delta

Each Alpha and Beta is a unique human being Reproduction Methods Each Alpha and Beta is the product of ONE fertilized egg developing into ONE fetus b/c they are at the top of the caste system Each Alpha and Beta is a unique human being Gammas, Deltas, and Epsilons are NOT unique They are created using the Bokanovsky process, which allows ONE egg to separate and create up to 96 children!

Everyone is encouraged to use the drug soma Life in the World State All citizens are conditioned as children to uphold the values of the World State Constant consumption is key to maintaining stability in the W.S.- things are produced and must be consumed = stable jobs and recreation Everyone is encouraged to use the drug soma a hallucinogenic that takes users on enjoyable, hangover-free ‘vacations’ Provides a replication of religious experience, which makes religion unnecessary Soma was created precisely for the above purposes

Sexual experimentation and games are encouraged at an early age “Everyone belongs to everyone else.” Recreational heterosexual and homosexual sex is a large, very important part of society In this egalitarian society, everyone is treated equally and sex is seen as a social activity rather than a means of reproduction Sexual experimentation and games are encouraged at an early age The concept of ‘family’ is a thing of the past Sexual competition and emotional, romantic relationships no longer exist

Marriage, natural childbirth, parenthood, and pregnancy are never talked about- these things are considered taboo and profane Recreation and other info. about the W.S. Spending time alone is considered a HUGE waste of time Admitting to wanting to be an individual is shocking, horrifying, and embarrassing People are conditioned to NEVER want to be alone- they should always be consuming something, playing golf, sleeping with someone, etc.

Death occurs around age 60 after having maintained good health and youthfulness for their entire lives Death is not feared- everyone is conditioned to think they are happy = no fear exists about anything The conditioning everyone goes through as children eliminates the need for professional competitiveness People are literally bred to do specific jobs and cannot/do not have any desire to do another job

Citizens participate in mock religious gatherings to grow closer to members of their own classes- great quantities of soma play a major role in these gatherings There are areas of the world that do not abide by the easy-living, consumption driven norms of the W.S. The W.S. ‘allows’ groups of well controlled, securely contained ‘savages’ to live on far away plots of land

Wow, that was a lot of notes! Nice Job! Happy Weekend 