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2007 is the 75th anniversary of the publication of Aldous Huxley's novel "Brave New World".
Like me, you probably read the book in high school English class, along with the other two Big Novels in social allegory -- Orwell's "1984" and "Animal Farm". Somehow over time, these books, along with other "Big Idea" books like "Atlas Shrugged" went from being serious literature to hoary standards fit only for naive and idealistic teenagers. And so they are foisted on a generally unappreciative audience, where they are woodenly transformed into lifeless book reports and essays or breathlessly embraced by teenage minds aching for philosophical explanations of the world that they can grasp.
We are reminded almost daily of the continuing relevance of "1984" in the context of our doublespeak public sphere, in the "endless war with Eastasia", and the intrusion of "Big Brother" into our lives. But "Brave New World" is often overlooked, lumped together with science fiction novels, even though the technological elements we all remember are really just decorative trappings for a more serious consideration of what it means to be human.
This essay from the conservative-leaning technology journal "The New Atlantis" revisits the book's themes and considers them in the context of our own times, as they prove to have a great deal of resonance with current social issues.
© BrianKaneOnline.com 2000-2007