Brave New World
Agency is lost to a controlling government when people seek quick easy fast solutions to life’s problems. Brave New World is a social commentary about a society that gives up its individual freedoms for social stability. Throughout much of our history, and the fictional story of Brave New World, we see people loosing their agency to an overpowering government for a promise of fast painless solutions, social stability, and leadership.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=As2sMgm0Szo
From the series that ran for only one year,
displalying the ideas in the book but not the original story
When there are problems, human nature always seeks an easy way out. The brook flowing down the mountain takes the path of least resistance, as do people. In the story of Brave New World, the fast easy answer to all problems was soma, the wonder drug of the day. It was like alcohol, except it did not have the bad side effects. The government used this quick panacea to keep everyone happy and under control. The citizens of Brave New World had a choice: to live with the problem or take soma and give up their freedoms. For example, when John got into a fight with the epsilon workers at the hospital, soma spray was used by the police to calm them down and make them forget their problems. We see examples of this in our own society as well. Many alcoholics drink to get away from their problems as the citizens of Brave New World took soma.
People want social stability as well as fast easy solutions. They want to know that everything is all right, and that no one is going to hurt them. Many times they are willing to give up their agency for it. People want security. In Brave New World, citizens gullibly lived their lives not worrying about anything; they had no perceived problems. Everyone wants a problem free live, and in some instances in our history, societies have given the government complete power for their promise of a better, happier, problem free society. Communist Russia was a good example of this. The people of Russia were having terrible economic and political problems, they wanted social stability, and the price they paid was their agency. An example from the story Brave New World is: before they genetically engineered children for different social classes, everyone was in the same social standing; they were all Alphas. As a result, no one wanted to do the dirty work and there was arguing and disputations. The citizens gave their agency to a few powerful individuals for a promise of social stability.
There is one common link that ties peoples desire for easy fast solutions and social stability. That link is strong leadership. In Brave New World, the few elite world controllers led the society, solved all their problems, and established social stability. During the Russian Revolution, there was chaos; a strong leader, Lenin, rose up and took control. He led Russia into the communist era and promised them fast easy solutions and social stability.
It is human nature to want peace and happiness. Many times people set out on a faulty road to a better life, which turns out to lead to greater unhappiness and strife. In Brave New World the citizens believed that the only way to peace was easy fast solutions and social stability. Their individual freedom was the price tag they paid. In reality, all they gained was ignorance, not happiness. In Russia during the revolution, the country was in chaos. The inhabitants wanted some one to save them from their problems. Lenin rose up and became a strong communist leader. As in Brave New World, the price tag the people of Russia paid was their agency. All they got was social unrest and economic catastrophe while the people of Brave New World received ignorance.