Brave New World Chapter 18 ST

Summary: Chapter 18
Bernard and Helmholtz say good-bye to John. John asks Mond if he can go with them to the islands, but
Mond refuses because he wants to continue “the experiment.” Later, John chooses to seclude himself
(= to withdraw) in an abandoned lighthouse in the wilderness. He plants his own garden and performs
rituals of self-punishment to purge himself (to purge = to get rid of) of the contamination of civilization.
One day, some Delta-Minus workers see John whipping himself. The next day, reporters come to
interview him. John kicks one reporter and angrily demands they respect his solitude. The newspapers
publish the incident and more reporters flock (come together in large numbers) to John’s home. He
reacts to them with increasing violence. One day he thinks longingly of Lenina and rushes to whip
himself. A man films the scene and releases a sensationally popular feely.
Fans of the feely soon visit John and chant, “We want the whip.” As the crowd chants, Lenina steps out
of a helicopter and walks toward him, arms open. John calls her a strumpet and proceeds to whip her,
saying, “Oh, the flesh! . . . Kill it, kill it!” Fascinated by the spectacle, the crowd mimes his gestures,
dances, and sings the hymn, “Orgy-porgy, Orgy . . .” After midnight, the helicopters leave and John
collapses, “stupefied by soma” and the extended “frenzy of sensuality.” When he awakes the next day,
he remembers everything with horror. Having read about the orgy in the papers, a swarm of visitors
descends on John’s lighthouse, discovering that he has hanged himself.
Analysis
Instead of finding fascination in the technological advances he witnesses in London, John is horrified by
the cloning, the immorality, the lack of love and care for others, and the rejection of God. He is also
appalled by the robotic nature of people's lives. After all of his horrifying experiences, he wants some
solitude so he can find the time and strength to figure out what he wants his existence to mean. He
refuses Mond's suggestion that he should remain in civilized London and continue to be a part of the
man's experiment. Before they left for the Falkland Islands, Bernard and Helmholtz noted John’s sickly
appearance and asked if he had eaten something that disagreed with him. John's answer sums up his
reservation life and World State experience: "I ate my own wickedness (=badness, wrongdoing;
Bösartigkeit)"
Huxley's descriptions of the voyeuristic people and media add more impetus to his satire. The media
fully understands that sensationalism sells. People want to witness it and to be a part of it if possible.
The author's creation of the Feelies, Solidarity Services, nightclubs, and soma reflect the society in
Huxley’s time. World War I had been over for only 13 years, and people were suffering worldwide
through the deprivations caused by the first two years of the Great Depression. They needed
amusement. Huxley just reflects the period by incorporating some of their techniques, one being the
tendency that encourages people to follow the crowd.
The final of many ironies in the book is situational. It stems from the example of foreshadowing that
occurs when John first meets Bernard and Lenina after the corn festival dance. He laments that he
wasn't chosen for the sacrifice in which the young Indian brave threaded his way through snakes while
being whipped. "They could have had twice as much blood from me," he says, his voice shaking with
despair. Now at the end of the book, John whips himself until he bleeds when the voyeurs insinuate
their way into his life with their orgy-porgy hysteria. He sacrifices his values when he takes soma and
sleeps with Lenina. The next day, mortified by his weakness, he hangs himself. John's reaction to being
hounded (= chased) by the media and his subsequent suicide sharply contrast with the shallowness of
the world he was visiting. People like him can never belong anywhere.
1
Question about chapter 18:
Why does Huxley have John the Savage commit suicide?
Review questions:
1.What is the theme of Brave New World?
2.What is the significance of Huxley's title?
3.What is the significance of Huxley's use of "Ford" as a substitute for

"Christ" or "God"?
4.In his novels Huxley often uses a spokesman for himself and his ideas.
Who is his spokesman in this novel?
5.Why was society in the World State divided into castes?
6.What is the significance of the World State's motto: "Community,

Identity, Stability"?

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Summary: Chapter 18

Why does Huxley have John the Savage commit suicide?

1.What is the theme of Brave New World?

2.What is the significance of Huxley's title?

3.What is the significance of Huxley's use of "Ford" as a substitute for

5.Why was society in the World State divided into castes?

6.What is the significance of the World State's motto: "Community,

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