Happiness in Aldous Huxleys Brave New World Essays -- Brave New World

When we look to define happiness, many different ideas come to mind. Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary uses three definitions for happiness: good fortune, a state of well being and contentment, and a pleasurable satisfaction. In Brave New World, Aldus Huxley argues that a society can redefine happiness through the government’s manipulation of the environment and the human mind itself. The government accomplishes this by mind conditioning throughout the process of maturing, keeping a caste-based society, and obliterating problems. The government thus defines happiness as the absence of all conflict. This differs from happiness as the American society sees it: the ability to pursue and enjoy individual desires.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The conditioning of minds allows the government to impress its ideas upon maturing children. The process used is hypnopà ¦dia, or repetition of sayings during sleep. After many repetitions of one phrase, the idea is hardened within the human mind, proving most difficult to undo. Evidence of this method to provide artificial happiness surfaces in both Lenina and Bernard’s actions. Huxley states this coldly during Lenina’s trip home with Henry Foster, â€Å"‘What a hideous color khaki is,’ remarked Lenina, voicing the hypnopà ¦dic prejudices of her caste† (62). Khaki is a color worn by lower castes in the society and the higher castes are taught not to associate with them. Bernard’s hypnopà ¦dic lessons did not work as well as most. He sees everything in this artific...