A Brave New World Quote Analysis

Diane Bean
Mrs. Collins
ERWC, Period 4
31 March 2023

Liberty in Unfeigned Sensibility
Khalil Gibran, a Lebanese-American writer, once said, “life without liberty is like a body without spirit.” This quote explains that to live in enslavement isn’t truly living, only freedom from the captivity of society can one truthfully live a fulfilled life. Gibran put into words what John the Savage felt throughout the book Brave New World. To have independence from the ideals of the World State is what John desired. John the Savage in the novel, Brave New World by Aldous Huxley identifies the construct of freedom as the capability of experiencing emotion, and living with all the adversities of humanity. Through John, Huxley is conveying that to be human,

So, to see individuals who are meant to be more advanced than him having never experienced strong emotions makes John upset. Soma is preventing the civilized people from having intense real emotion, not the kind they are convinced are real. Johns sees Soma as the evil in this world, the one responsible for these emotionless creatures. In response to this realization John gives the Deltas a solution to the dilemma, to leave behind the pills and “throw it all away” (Huxley 180). John’s argument is to throw the Soma out to make the temptation to take the pills easier to ignore. To leave the drugs behind is to be free from the civil way of life that is harming them. Huxley makes it present that easily accessible solutions to problems will always be the first place people will look. But to actually feel emotion and get through adversities with strength is what makes one human. Taking the pills will make one addicted to the fake joy. In an attempt to further convince the twins Soma is disastrous, John stops the Deltas from taking Soma by shouting, “...do you like being babies?” (Huxley 181). Asking the twins with such fervency, John points out how taking Soma is leaving them unable to experience any strong emotions. Taking away the ability to be human, to be free and truly happy. Not from the pills that make them feel fake emotions. Huxley is making a point that humans will look for other means to feel

John begins to express his opinions on the World State. John claims that “nothing costs enough here” (Huxley 203). There are no challenges to cry over, no obstacles to overcome. There is no humanity in the way the world is run. One cannot be human without adversities, because one can’t feel real emotion without knowing what struggling is. Huxley is warning us that blissful ignorance to facing difficulties will leave one as emotionally intelligent as a baby. Huxley includes this in the novel as an example of how we could be if we felt emotion rather than ignored it. John is determined to convince Mond that he wants freedom, not comfort. In response Mond names all the downsides to being free, he names all the diseases and troubles one would go through without the protection of the World State. In response John says, exasperated, “I claim them all” (Huxley 204). John is standing his ground on the matter of freedom in this scene, and makes it clear that he wants to be free more than anything. John believes that, in order to fully appreciate life, you must indulge in the less pleasant activities as well. Huxley is conveying that life isn’t always going to be easy, but that is no reason to take the easy route. It is better to live in pain than a false