Chapter 12-18: Actions and Causes of BNW

I kicked my butt into gear this past week and read seven chapters which pretty much ending the story portion of the book. The next is part is the revisiting of BNW.

There is a lot to sum up in the book so I'm going to put it in bullet/sentence form.

-John wouldn't come out of his room to meet some important people who had been nice to Bernard just so  they could see "Mr. Savage."
-This caused Bernard to be lowered back into his normal social ranking like he was before John.
-Lenina got it into her head that she was going to have John no matter what.
-But, when she try to do this John became very angry and started calling her a whore because she was causing him so temptation.
-He almost killed her.
-Quickly following, he got a call that his mother, Linda, was dying.
-He went to the hospital to see her where she died.
-John was so full of grief and misery that he tried to show the people of the BNW that they did not see the truth.
-He ended up throwing soma out the window which caused a lot of fighting.
-This is where Bernard and Helmholtz found him, Helmholtz then joined in the fight.
-The police came and drug them all with soma.
- The three man were taking to the Controller where they discussed the meaning of the BNW and consequences for their actions.
-Bernard will go to Iceland and Helmholtz will go to another island with lots of storms.
-These islands are meant for the people who can't adapt to BNW, so it's more like a gift than a punishment.
-John is not given this option because the Controller wants to see how he does here for awhile longer.
-After their long discussion of philosophy, God, and purpose; John leaves and goes to find a place where he can live alone with his sorrow.
-John has chosen the path of truth instead of happiness.
-He lives there for a time, punishing himself with a whip when he sings or thinks of Lenina.
-He is seen whipping himself by other people and that causes a lot of attention for him.
-One moment he is alone, the next, tons of people are around him saying "Whip! Whip! Whip!"
-He does and then he sees Lenina.
-He's so full of temptation and rage that he runs at her and whips her and then himself over and over.
-Everyone begins in this fighting charade and it turns into what John never wanted full of sex and soma.
-In the morning after everyone is gone and he wakes up he cries "Oh my God, my God!"
-I don't think John killed Lenina.
-But the final part is finding that he hung himself.

Image from http://stallsandwalls.com/

Anyway, that's the sum up of the book. I thought that maybe it would turn out all good in the end, but that was naive and this is ending is more realistic for a futuristic novel. I feel very little connection with this book and its characters but I enjoyed reading it anyways. I believe that the Controller keep him in the BNW world because he wanted to see the truth and what it does. And for that he did find out and it costed John's life.

More on what I think of this book and the revisiting of it in the next couple blogs.

Chapter 11: Reaction to the "Savage"

In the next chapter it deals with the Director quitting his job, which saves Bernard from moving to Iceland. Bernard is quickly surrounded with fame for bringing this "savage" (John) to the NW and he feels much more powerful for it. He is becoming very arrogant and his closes friend Helmholtz is finding him hard to be around.

Lenina is also receiving her fame, yet all she wants is to just be with John. They go to a Feely, which is a pretty much a movie that has scents and feelings for the audience. She hopes that after that she will "experience" John in the BNW way. Only, she is simply dropped off and left by herself and her soma.

Image from http://midlifebatmitzvah.wordpress.com/2011/03/26/best-rejection-ever/

(Though in BNW it's visa versa)

John does like Lenina but with the way he was raised in the "Savage Reservation" he finds it wrong to do the thing Lenina wants. He's giving the impression to Lenina that he doesn't like her and it's making her very depressed.

I find Bernard is a very annoying character who I was hoping would become a hero. As the book continues I don't think that will happen and I predict John will make the changes to the NW. I hope that Lenina will understand John's ways and except them, but that would be a very hard decision for her. We will find out. Also, John is being referred to as a savage but in all respects he's more like you or me.

Chapter 8, 9, & 10: Outcast

The story continues with hearing the life of the son of Linda, the lady from BNW. (They split everyone into groups in BNW, Alpha, Beta, ect.) The son's name is John, and he's about as old as Bernard and Lenina. He explains his life and how he has been an outcast from the people of his village because of his color. He also is much different from his mother who has had all the NW's brainwashing soaked into her thoughts. He's alone. This is something Bernard can relate to and so he agrees to try and bring Linda and John to their society. This is to benefit all because Bernard also knows who John's father is. It's the Director, who was about to move Bernard to Iceland for his behavior in not conforming to the norm social life. With presenting Linda and John to the Director, Bernard might be able to save himself from Iceland.

Image from http://walkwitheu.blogspot.com/2010/12/different-outcast-normal.html

Chapter 5, 6, & 7: New Adventures

Bernard and Lenina are started a BNW relationship where everything seems to be just a fling. They don't quite understand each other but they get along. I find the Lenina is a sweet person but just can't understand possibilities of what would be abnormal. Bernard, on the other-hand, thinks very abnormally compared to the BNW society; most of the time he is very sad and prefers it that way. He constantly refuses soma pills, which is pretty much a pill that makes you happy.

Image from http://www.heritage.nf.ca/law/whipping_post.html

There relationship continues and they travel together to the Savage Reservation in southern North America.  The Savage Reservation is unlike the link I put on the previous blog; it's a village full of pueblos with in a square in the center, this is where sacrifices and other religious events are held. Lenina and Bernard witness one of these sacrifices where a young boy was chosen to be whip until he fell. The purpose of this was to get as much blood from the boy so that it would rain for the village's crops. They then found a women and her son who were suppose to be apart of the NW society.
I predict that these two will come back to the New World and the young man will cause havoc because he hasn't been brainwashed.