Compare and Contrast
The dystopian novels, Brave New World and 1984 by Aldous Huxley and George Orwell, respectively, are widely considered to be the two greatest examples of dystopian literature ever written – and certainly, the most well-known. Both novels deal with alternative versions of our reality where fascism reigns and there are totalitarian governments in place. The two novels share a number of similar ideas which differ only slightly in terms of their severity or extent. Both Huxley and Orwell wrote these novels on the basis of social comment – driven by the rise of fascism in Europe around the time of World War Two, and both novels have proven to be oddly prophetic too.
In Brave New World, the government plays less of a controlling role than it does in 1984 but certainly, their control is ingrained into citizens from the moment of their conception: hypnopaedia allows for pre and postnatal infants to be indoctrinated with society’s expectations of them, depending on their caste. In 1984, the Party prefer to use mind control to directly govern the choices that their citizens make: doublethink allows for the individual to still have their own opinions and thoughts but they are undercut by the thoughts and opinions that the Party wish them to hold. In short, the government in 1984 is significantly more invasive than that of Brave New World where citizens are allowed to think for themselves, so long as it conforms to the social expectations of them. Both of these ideas directly comment on society in real life: particularly today when, despite the rise of feminism, there are still notable social expectations of both men and women to fulfil certain roles and perceptions. Women are expected to be slim, pretty and domestic whilst men are expected to be strong, protective and able to provide. Both of these are archaic views but are still ingrained upon society; Orwell and Huxley clearly both demonstrate this in their novels.
Where the two novels are in contrast with one another is the presentation of the two governing bodies. In Huxley’s Brave New World, the Director is a simple man – he is featured in the opening pages as giving a tour of the birthing labs and is presented as being a ‘man of the people’ – able to share a joke, knows the names of workers and converses freely with the individuals. By the end of the novel, the Director is forced to resign because of some ‘embarrassment’ concerning his fathering the child of a savage woman – demonstrating his humanity.
However, in 1984, Orwell’s governing body is presented as being somewhat faceless because he is never formally present in the book. Known as ‘Big Brother,’ the leader may or may not exist but his ‘presence’ serves a purpose of maintaining control over Oceania and unlike the Director in Huxley’s novel, Big Brother is an almost omnipresent leader – god-like in his ability to know what citizens are thinking and doing at all times.
Orwell’s novel is far more severe than Huxley’s and this is shown through the ever-present and claustrophobic style danger that is felt through 1984 as contrasted by the relatively freedom-filled lives of the citizens in Brave New World. This is further shown by the presentation of the respective leaders too: Big Brother is unreal in his ever-present state whereas The Director is a man behind a desk who makes mistakes and is approachable by citizens. Whilst the two novels are comparably similar in their subject matter, their presentations are massively contrasted.
References
Huxley, Aldous. Brave New World. New York: HarperCollins, 2010. Print.
Orwell, George. 1984. New York: Plume, 1983. Print.
