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        The satirical work Brave New World by Aldous Huxley is a very thought provoking piece, perfect for the science fiction reader who fears government control has gone too far.  Many people worry that they are losing their sense of individuality in the name of political stability and the betterment of the community.  

        Civilization in the brave new world is widely characterized by maintaining a stable feeling of happiness in its citizens.  In this restrictive environment the art of theater and playwrights is nonexistent.  People do not understand tragedies because they have no concept of what it is to be sad.  Instead, the favorite form of entertainment is the Feelies, a type of movie that involves sight, sound, and touch.  The plot line of all the Feelies revolves around what today’s readers consider indecent for today’s society, pornography.  

In this brave new world everyone takes daily doses of soma whenever they are feeling slightly down or out of sorts.  Babies are not born, but rather they are decanted from bottles in never-ending sets of eighty some twins.  “Mother” is used as a type of curse word, and people think that it is disgusting to even consider the idea of someone having parents.  

The government in the brave new world molds its people to like and approve the way things are through conditioning.  They start from the moment the children are decanted they are trained with simple proverbs and actions.  They are taught that death is a matter of fact, and that if they do not engage in erotic sex play from a very young age they are considered defective.  

Every human being is conditioned to fulfill one job in life that the Hatchery chooses and then trains him or her for.  This perfect stability and perfect happiness with which everyone carries out their job demonstrates the utopian society.  One of the characters, Mr. John Savage lends a satirical aspect to the novel, making it a worthwhile read.  His observations show how the stability of utopia is not a perfect world.

        The universal theme that government control is becoming too oppressive keeps the prophetic voice of Brave New World contemporary.  The governmental policies that Huxley projected 600 years into the future, such as political internationalism and worldwide leaders are already being seen, less than a century after the original publication.  Today’s world is already beginning to be restricted in the ways that Huxley feared.  Brave New World sheds light on this situation and its presence in today’s world.  It is highly recommended for the science fiction reader who fears the control of the government in society.