Brave New World Revisited (P.S.) [Paperback]

Aldous Huxley (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 5, 2006 | Series: P.S.

When the novel Brave New World first appeared in 1932, its shocking analysis of a scientific dictatorship seemed a projection into the remote future. Here, in one of the most important and fascinating books of his career, Aldous Huxley uses his tremendous knowledge of human relations to compare the modern-day world with his prophetic fantasy. He scrutinizes threats to humanity, such as overpopulation, propaganda, and chemical persuasion, and explains why we have found it virtually impossible to avoid them. Brave New World Revisited is a trenchant plea that humankind should educate itself for freedom before it is too late.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A message which, enforced by Mr. Huxley's seriousness and clear dialectic on dealing with social problems, we cannot ignore.... The last pages carry a somewhat tragic node about his misgivings whether man himself wishes ot be saved." -- Time and Tide, London

"A thought jabbing, terrifying book." -- -- Chicago Tribune

"Brilliantly written.... Should appeal to readers of all breeds." -- -- Kirkus Review

"It is a frightening experience.... to discover how much of his satirical prediction of a distant future became reality in so short a time." -- New York Times Book Review" --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From the Inside Flap

Huxley checks the progress of his prophecies in his seminar novel Brave New World thirty years after it was first published, covering issues such as overpopulation, propaganda, the art of selling and brainwashing, drugs and political control.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Harper Perennial Modern Classics; Reprint edition (September 5, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060898526
• ISBN-13: 978-0060898526
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (57 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,123 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) is the author of the classic novels Island, Eyeless in Gaza, and The Genius and the Goddess, as well as such critically acclaimed nonfiction works as The Devils of Loudun, The Doors of Perception, and The Perennial Philosophy. Born in Surrey, England, and educated at Oxford, he died in Los Angeles.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#22 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Classics

#33 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction

#72 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Science Fiction

#86 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

#22 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Classics

#33 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction

#72 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Science Fiction

#86 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

119 of 125 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Be Afraid, Be Very Afraid January 13, 2001

By "netchild"

Format:Paperback

That is the message which Huxley conveys through this follow-up to his masterpiece, Brave New World. Huxley's obsevations of modern day mind control methods, brainwashing, and propaganda are chilling. What is even more chilling is that this book was written in 1958, one can imagine what advances in these dark sciences man has taken since then. A key point in this book is that if a totalitarian state is going to exist in the present day it will almost surely be more like Huxley's Brave New World, rather than Orwell's 1984. The main reason for this is that whereas Orwell's society revolves around the threat of violence, torture, and death, Huxley's revolves around the reward system. Huxley's Brave New World lulls the masses to sleep so that they have no idea that their freedom is being taken away. Huxley predicts that we will drug people who are even slightly out of the norm for "mental illnesses" (does Prozac ring a bell?). He predicts that valuable information, information necessary for the preservation of freedom, will be subtly, very subtly, taken away from the masses while replacing it with a seemingly terrific reward (does television ring a bell?). Huxley's most frightening premise in this book is that the individual (what he and others identify as "The Great Man") is being done away with by modern "science". He recapitulates for us the great debate between the behaviorist psychologists (like Watson and Skinner) and the philosopher psychologist William James. Skinner and company believe that the individual is powerless over his environmental influences while James strongly believes in the idea of "The Great Man". (In other words did Elizabethan England create Shakespeare's plays or did Shakespeare create his plays?...) Huxley tells us the bad news in bulk before getting to the obvious question What can we do? His answer can be summarized in one word, THINK!!! Think, debate, don't accept the packaged and marketed ideas that are given to you like a McDonalds cheeseburger. In Huxley's words, educated yourself for freedom. And you can start by reading a copy of this book. If your local bookstore doesn't have one, then for God's sake, for all of our sakes, find a copy quick. Read more ›

73 of 81 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The world is ripe to take Mr. Huxley more seriously October 24, 1999

By Walter V. Cicha

Format:Paperback

Mr. Huxley started warning us in 1932, with his masterpiece, "Brave New World." In this essay-style analysis of his own book, written twenty-six years later, he takes it one big step further. Addressing everything from overpopulation to overorganization, his words ring more true with every passing year. Our society needs to lift its head from the computer screen for a few hours to read this critical work. Few, if any, have said so much in so little space. Mr. Huxley is one of the greatest thinkers of the twentieth century, and it is a criminal shame that his words are not more widely read. We should put down our endless self-help manuals and learn where our ills really begin. We need to understand how the roots serve the tree before we can improve upon the tree. Mr. Huxley is an expert gardener...

31 of 33 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Beware the Enemies of INDIVIDUAL FREEDOM!! July 29, 2005

By Stephen Pletko TOP 1000 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

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This non-fiction book of essays, by author Aldous Huxley (1894 to 1963), examines the predictions he made in his fascinating science fiction novel written over a quarter of a century from the time he wrote this book. Huxley explains:

"When [my science fiction novel] `Brave New World' [1932] was being written, I was convinced that there was plenty of time. The completely organized society, the...caste [or class] system, the abolition of free will by methodical conditioning, the servitude made acceptable by regular doses of chemically induced happiness, the orthodoxies drummed in by...sleep-teaching--these [threats to individual freedom] were coming all right, but not in my time...I feel a good deal less optimistic than I did when I was writing [my science fiction novel]. The prophecies made in [my science fiction novel] are coming true much sooner than I thought they would...Impersonal forces over which we have almost no control seem to be pushing us all in the direction of the Brave New Worldian nightmare...impersonal forces which are now making the world so extremely unsafe for democracy [and] individual freedom."

This is what this book does. It looks in depth at the above threats or forces to or "enemies of" individual freedom and others mentioned in Huxley's science fiction novel and applies them to the modern world.... The author examines in depth the following six threats or forces:

(1) overpopulation

(2) over-organization (or bureaucracy)

(3) propaganda (in a democratic society and under a dictatorship)

(4) brainwashing

(5) persuasion (chemical and subconscious or subliminal)

(6) hypnopaedia (sleep-teaching)

His analysis made over a quarter century ago (from the year of this review) is amazingly accurate. I'll give one perfect example:

"Our contemporary Western society, in spite of its material, intellectual, and material progress, is increasingly less conducive to mental health, and tends to undermine the inner security, happiness, reason, and the capacity for love in the individual; it tends to turn him into an automaton who pays for his human failure with increasing mental sickness, and with despair hidden under a frantic drive for work and so-called pleasure...Man [and woman are] not made to be an automaton, and if he [or she] becomes one, the basis for mental health is destroyed...People are related to one another, not as total personalities but as embodiments of economic functions or, when they are not at work, as irresponsible seekers of entertainment."

The above example is the kind of insight you'll find throughout this well-written book. There are a few (very few!) times Huxley seems to be wrong, but the majority of time he is spot-on.

In the last chapter of his book, Huxley attempts amongst other things to answer the following question:

"How can we control the vast impersonal forces that now menace our hard-one freedoms?" He does a good job coming to grips with this difficult question.

Do you have to read Huxley's previous science fiction novel to understand this book? NO. When he refers to his science fiction novel in this book he does not make any assumptions that the reader has read his science fiction novel. However, as a person who has read his previous novel, I can say that this book had more impact on me than if I had not read the previous novel.

Finally, the only problem I had with this non-fiction book is that it has no references and footnotes (or notes). Huxley to be sure uses information and statistics from other sources but no credit is given to them. Huxley, in his main narrative, does sometimes give informal credit to his sources but many times, he does not even do this. All information sources should have been properly referenced.

In conclusion, this is an insightful, prophetic, fascinating book that makes the case that our society may be heading in the wrong direction due to forces attempting to take away our individual freedoms!

(first published 1958; forward by author; 12 chapters; main narrative 185 pages)

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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The most relevant negative utopia. February 11, 2000

By Patrick Schwemmer

Format:Paperback

An absolutely superb essay on the world and society in general--like 1984 and Brave New World but without all the story and metaphor--and straight to the point. Much more relevant to our current times than either of the aforementioned books, also.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An interesting collection of essays August 5, 2003

By Evan Wearne

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This work by Aldous Huxley is one of the best nonfiction books I have read. I couldn't help but realize this man's genius as I read this book. His understanding of science is evident and only surpassed by his knowledge of the psychological. I recognized some of what I read, and believe that "Brave New World Revisited" must be the original source. Additionally, the book contains much information I had never heard before.

The book is a collection of twelve essays written on how to prevent the world from "Brave New World" from coming into existence. Already in 1958, Huxley paints a bleak picture for our future. One of the main problems Huxley forsees is the lack of desire for freedom. In 1958, a study showed that American youths were indifferent to rule by a few experts instead of a democracy. He sees a need to increase critical thinking in the individuals of a society. He also explains the current methods of involuntary mental manipulation. The "Brave New World Revisited" is an informative collection of essays that has risen my awareness of psychological dangers.