Aldous Huxley was an influential English novelist, visionary, and philosopher in the 20th century. In his well known novel, Brave New World, he examined topics of technologically sophisticated societies and dystopias. His writings continue to be influential and thought provoking even in today’s society. As Huxley grew up, he was always exposed to literature. His father was Leonard Huxley, a teacher and editor of Cornhill Magazine, and his mother was Julia Arnold, who founded Prior’s Field School (and was the niece of famous poet and essayist Matthew Arnold) (Findley). He was also the grandson of Thomas Henry Huxley, a prominent biologist, which could explain Huxley’s early interest in science. He was educated at Eton, and graduated from Balliol …show more content…
His uniqueness lay in his universalism. He was able to take all knowledge for his province”(Findley). Huxley’s career began when he published his first two novels, Chrome Yellow, and Antic Hay. The turning point of his career was his famous novel, Brave New World, this satirical novel portrays a society based on psychological conditioning, characterized by a caste system that ultimately eliminates individuals and grants the World State complete authority (Aldous Huxley). Aldous Huxley's book "The Doors of Perception" revolutionized hallucinogenic drug research by highlighting perceptual alterations of mescaline and its potential for spiritual and philosophical experiences. Drawing inspiration from Eckhart, Buddha, Plato, and Bergson, Huxley's work influenced psychedelic ideology and consciousness-altering chemicals (Hartogsohn). Prior studies labeled the hallucinogenic occurrences as "distortions" or "disorders," but Huxley praised mescaline's ability to transform perception, saying, "This is how one ought to see, how things really are."(Hartogsohn). Huxley had a very fascinating career, he engaged deeply with a broad range of subjects, including literature, science, spirituality, and