It is ironic that only a handful of the people in the brave new world would understand the title of the book, or be familiar with the source of the quotation which provides it. When John the Savage uses the phrase for the first time, he asks if Bernard remembers Miranda's line from The Tempest, to which Bernard, who is an Alpha Plus and well-educated by the standards of his society, replies "Who's Miranda?" John's meaning, therefore, is slightly undercut even as he utters the phrase ecstatically for the first time.
John is sincere when he first refers to the society as a brave new world, but the irony of the phrase deepens each time he uses it, until the last time. He is horrified to see a factory staffed by Gammas, Deltas and Epsilions:
"O brave new world..." By some malice of his memory the Savage found himself repeating Miranda's words. "O brave new world that has such people in it."
Finally, after Linda's death, John understands the words "brave new world" as an exhortation and an...
(The entire section contains 3 answers and 951 words.)
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