In the book entitled, Brave New World I personally discovered what it means to be a human and how our identity is so utterly vital to us. In the year A.F. 632 the population was stripped of the essence of themselves and essentially left with a shell of a being. With that having said, we thrive on socialization (with that comes identity) and fall apart without it. Without identity many of the characters began to crumble under the weight of the factory produced society. Nevertheless, while reading this fascinating book I came to a few realizations of my own identity along the way. I believe we have total control in who we are, what we do, and most importantly what we become in the future.
Our self identity is comprised of three different components:
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Everyone has a specific goal in mind whether that be to express art or to fit in at the moment. Besides this, identity has no definite shape or strict definition you can categorize your entire consciousness into. There are many factors that go into building an identity. One of which is environmental factors. This can be influenced by the media, your family, or other external forces. You pick and choose ideas from these selections to build your own personal views and morals about the world. Despite being unable to choose your environmental factors, you can still play a huge role in deciding which turn your identity takes eventually becoming the person you want to …show more content…
First of all, I have been in Bernards shoes. Bernard is best described as a sore loser. He doesn’t like the situation he is in and when we wins it all for a brief period of time he is suddenly okay with A.F. 632. I was enlightened by Bernard and discovered myself when I realized I could relate to his characteristics. Another character I identify with is John “the Savage”. John tries to control the situation he is in and when he fails to succeed he is hopeless; further reducing his self esteem. He doesn't realize that he doesn't have the capability to change other peoples strong held beliefs. I often try to do this and end up back to square one where I started. I realized this of myself after finishing the
Charles LP. Silet affirms this by stating, “On the return to his own world, the savage in tow, Bernard continues to think antisocial thoughts, ideas which drive Lenina to break with him and to take increasing doses of intellectually and emotionally deadening drugs” (Silet 495). She fails to see past the physical aspects of men and is confused on how to understand a relationship with emotions. Huxley points out, “Unable to escape her conditioning, she fears his attraction to her” (Huxley 55). Lenina is scared of Johns perspective of her and his view is above measures she cannot comprehend.
Are you who you are because of individuality, or because of someone else? Truth is, the answer can be either one. The Marrian Webster Dictionary goes on to define identity as “who someone is”, but there is much more to it. Identity works in many ways. For my definition of identity, I believe that identity is how you present yourself to society.
This is made clear as Bernard showcases the advanced civilization to John and John seems either unimpressed or confused about the whole situation. This is exemplified when John visits both the library and the Television Corporation factory as the savage learns about daily soma rations of the lower castes and the absence of Shakespeare in the World State. (Pg 164-165). As John continues to explore the world around him it is made very clear that he dislikes and is simply a square peg trying to fit into a circular hole, though John isn’t really trying to fit in moreover just blindly following others direction. This becomes clear to John as Bernard begins parading him around at parties as some kind of entertainment and after finally rejecting to go to one of Bernard's party the reader can see how much John is simply a tool that Bernard is using for his own social gain.
One character who has a major impact on John is his father. John’s father shoots down his dream of becoming an actor and having big goals, instead of encouraging him and supporting his dreams. This, however, causes John to strive beyond living an average life. His father was also a compulsive alcoholic, and at parties would encourage John to drink alcohol to impress his friends. In turn John becomes addicted to alcohol, and is an avid drinker.
“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment” (Ralph Waldo Emerson). Emerson suggests that humans are living in a world in which humanity is constantly attempting to change individuals. Society tries to change humans identities, but a human’s identity is what allows them to express themselves and distinguish themselves from others. Human nature is supposed to look, act and think differently, and, when humans are very similar it becomes difficult to interact and get along with others. A time that preserving identity becomes notably challenging is during times of crisis.
Brave New World is a novel that is very carefully planned and put together. It opens in the year 632 A.F. All of civilization as we know it, no longer existed. Citizens are divided into five castes: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, or Epsilon. Alpha as the highest castes enjoy superior tasks, while the lower ones perform menial roles. Ten Controllers controlled these citizen by conditioning infant minds and by soothing adults with the tranquilizer, soma.
Throughout my life I have come from and created a few identities for myself. Perhaps, the most dominant identities that have been apart of my life are being an athlete and being a family orientated man. In this paper I will write about how my identities have shaped my life. First off I believe my biggest identity is being an athlete.
On page three (the first page of chapter one) of “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley, in the first paragraph, it says “... the World State’s motto…” is “... Community, Identity, Stability.” Just those words: “... Community, Identity, Stability,” makes me think about Glenn Beck’s novel Agenda 21 and the dystopian society in that book. Community in Agenda 21 was in the form of “compounds” the people were forced to live in based on the jobs they were forced to work. The only compound I could remember was called the “Recycling Compound.” The “compounds” bring us to identity; people were forced to wear the colors of their compound.
In The movie John collaborated with himself and the rest of the group. John addressed both of his own and the groups needs. By sacrificing himself to get caught by the teacher in the
The environment in which an individual grows up in can affect life greatly. Our surroundings influence one’s personality, self-expression, and individuality, otherwise known as identity. Finding one’s true self is the most grueling stage of life and expectations of family and society make the process even harder. One’s true identity can sometimes clash with hopes of others, thus breaking tradition and/or family ties. Pressure to change will always be present, but staying true to uniqueness will prevail.
Someone 's identity defines who they are. There are no two identities that are the same. , Everyone is unique in different ways. Finding oneself may take time and might not be exactly what you are expecting. In the novel “Milkweed” by Jerry Spinelli, the protagonist Jack assumes many identities but ultimately does not know who he is.
Identity is who someone is as a person. People have different views of what identity is and what can be done to find it. Identity can be your actions and thoughts. It’s what makes someone unique and different from anyone else. The Bible has its own view of identity as well.
Brave New World How do you view freedom? How do I view freedom? How does anyone view freedom? Those are questions for another day, today we will be answering other questions. How do characters in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World; such as The Savage, Bernard Marx, and Helmholtz Watson; view freedom?
Identity is something people tend to think of as consistent, however that is far from the case. The Oxford English dictionary states that the definition of identity is “ The characteristics determining who or what a person or thing is.” The allegorical novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding tackles the issue of identity while following young boys from the ages twelve and down as they struggle with remembering their identities when trapped on a deserted island. Identity is affected by the influence of society and how individuals influence society based on their identities. By looking at Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the Stanford Prison Experiment, and Sigmund Freud 's philosophical ideas, it becomes clear that identity is affected by society through peer pressure and social normalities.
As I mature, my perspective of life and what it is to be a unique individual is ever changing. I believe that an individual’s environmental and surrounding contributes to their identity greatly. The culture in which one grows up in is a element that shapes one’s beliefs. When I was younger, my friends aided to shape my identity. My peers had a great influence on how I defined myself in early childhood because I deeply valued and cared about what others thought of me.