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Consumerism In Aldous Huxley's Brave New World

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Progress is defined as fast and onward movement towards a destination. Today’s society revolves around the concept; constantly innovating and upgrading every aspect of itself, in the quest for a better, more efficient world. Although at its core, progress is a pure, unblemished search for more. In practice, however, progress often becomes polluted by the goals of those who aim for it. The world in which we reside has been shaped and remade over and over by the different advances of the time. In Aldous Huxley’s famous novel, Brave New World, he explores a world that progress has warped into something twisted and dark, which chillingly shares many of the characteristics of modern life in the United States; his novel takes those advances to the …show more content…

The citizens of Huxley's “brave new world” have been conditioned to constantly consume new things because of how they were conditioned when they were younger. All of the citizens in Huxley’s society believe that “ending is better than mending,” and that they “love new clothes,” (Huxley, 52). This ensures that people are always purchasing new items, and constantly throwing away any items that might be in need of repair. Consumerism is second nature in their society, and economic stability ensures the efficiency of the World State. In Huxley’s novel, the people have no choice in their beliefs, since they were forced onto them as children. Similarly in America, most people perpetuate consumerism, viewing material items as replaceable and disposable. People identify themselves by what they own, perpetuating consumerism and benefiting corporations simply because they believe that they should, for their own self worth. Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World presents a grim view of the future. In the name of progress, people have been stripped of their free thoughts, their families, and have been enslaved to consumerism. While modern society in America mirrors some of the aspects of Huxley’s society, with its heavy consumerism and leaps in genetic engineering being used to advance the population, at its heart, America is ultimately a much more free, open minded society. The “brave new world” is not upon us

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