Substance Abuse In Aldous Huxley's Brave New World

Aldous Huxley's novel, "Brave New World," offers a chillingly accurate portrayal of the path our society is currently heading towards. With the rise of substance abuse and a growing culture of seeking temporary fulfillment, it seems as though we are moving towards a world where people rely on pills and other substances to solve their problems. Huxley's depiction of a society that heavily relies on a drug called "Soma" for their happiness is increasingly similar to the reality we face today. This evolution poses a significant threat to our collective well-being, impacting our performance in the workplace, our family relationships, and our overall mental health. In this essay, I will defend this notion, exploring the cause of our growing reliance

One of the most striking similarities between the society in "Brave New World" and our own is how normalized the use of Soma is. In Huxley's world, Soma is consumed casually and without much thought. As the text notes on page 163, "Soma tablets were handed round; half a gramme for a half-holiday, a gramme for a week-end, two grammes for a trip to the gorgeous East, three for a dark eternity on the moon." This shows how Soma is even used in times of celebration and mourning, and as the quote describes when Lennina dies or during the "Solidarity Service." This is eerily similar to how alcohol is treated in our society. Drinking has become a staple at parties, family gatherings, and other events, and it is often seen as a necessary component of socializing. For example, in my own Latino culture, alcohol is present at even children's parties. While I was never told to glorify drinking, it was a normalized

The characters in the novel use Soma to achieve a temporary state of happiness or euphoria. Lenina's statement on page 238 perfectly captures the mentality of the citizens of the World State, "But it's so very nice, and if you feel unhappy, you take a gramme and you're happy again." However, this type of artificial happiness is not unique to the world of Brave New World. In fact, many individuals in our own society use substances such as alcohol, narcotics, and nicotine to attain temporary happiness and to relieve stress. Some people even rely on these substances on a daily basis to cope with the stress and anxiety that they face every day. This dependence on substances often leads to a dangerous cycle, where individuals feel they cannot function without them. As more and more people fall into this trap, we risk ending up like the society depicted in Brave New World, where happiness is manufactured and individuality is suppressed. Sadly, our own government seems to be following a similar path, with a lack of resources and support for those struggling with substance abuse, exemplified by the current opioid epidemic in America. If we continue down this path, our society may end up like the one in Brave New World, where the pursuit of happiness comes at the cost of individual