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Promiscuity In Brave New World

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Promiscuity In Brave New World
Within the film Equilibrium, the main character Preston becomes an individual and realises that feeling is more important than taking the drug prozium which eliminates feeling. This is where he begins to differ from the majority of society. This is evident as Preston awakens from a dream that affects him severely on an emotional level. He then starts to feel guilty after looking out the window towards the city, the view captivates him and this sparks even further emotion. To quickly snap out of this unacceptable behaviour in his society, as well as government related fear, he attempts to inject more prozium but stops when he views himself in the bathroom mirrors reflection. Lenina, from Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World is considered a normal person in her society but has always struggled with promiscuity, something that is considered normal in the World State socially and is purposely implemented by the government. Meeting John causes Lenina to experience something she never has before, attraction towards him. She experiences the "strange feeling of anxious exultation . . . (for she had . . . her mind made up) 'that I like him--more than anybody I've ever known." (Aldous Huxley, 1938). This is further exemplified when Bernard states that John isn’t coming to the party. Lenina then automatically thinks “Perhaps it’s because he doesn’t like me” (Aldous Huxley, 1938). Later on, Lenina goes against her only knowledge of dealing with pain and refuses to take soma to deal with her grief.

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