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In dystopian novels, the rebels aren’t usually successful. Which means this book could definitely leave you feeling down. Jenny puts a different spin on Brave New World – just give her 60 seconds of your time.

Video Transcription:

Bernard is in exile, The Savage is dead, and in spite of their best efforts, nothing in the society of Brave New World remotely changed. So why am I sounding so upbeat? I’ll give you the scoop—next.

Here’s what I’ve come to realize about dystopian novels—because I’ve read a lot of them recently. I’ve realized that in dystopian novels, the characters suffer so you don’t have to. Their suffering—and their deaths—are horrible, but they aren’t gratuitous. At least, they aren’t gratuitous if you choose to learn from them.

Even though he was writing back in the 1930s, Aldous Huxley still saw a lot of problems with where the world was going. Genetic engineering. Rampant consumerism. Order at the cost of liberty. So what did Huxley do? He killed off a few characters and hoped you were paying attention.

I know. I’m being a little flip at the risk of being shocking. Because I want you to remember The Savage and Lenina and Bernard and Helmholtz. I want you to do everything you can to make sure their story doesn’t become ours. I want you to face the world’s problems instead of blocking them out with TV or any other kind of drug. I want you to know that liberty is worth fighting for.

Huxley’s book is a strange sort of promise that, together, we can create a brave new world that’s actually worthy such a title.