Discussion Topic
Bernard's views on soma and sports in "Brave New World"
Summary:
Bernard views soma and sports in "Brave New World" as tools of control used by the state to suppress individuality and maintain societal stability. He is critical of these activities because they prevent people from thinking independently and experiencing genuine emotions, which he values highly.
What is Bernard's opinion about soma in Brave New World?
As the previous Educator has noted, Bernard has a negative attitude toward soma. We see this clearly in chapter 4 when Benito offers him some: when Benito takes out his soma bottle, Bernard “suddenly turned and rushed away.” In other words, Bernard is not only disinterested in taking soma but physically turns away from it. He feels a need to distance himself from soma, suggesting a strong dislike of its qualities.
Perhaps the strongest evidence of his negative attitude towards soma comes in chapter 6, when he and Lenin are together and have met some of her friends in an ice-cream soma bar. Bernard is in a particularly bad mood and declares,
"I'd rather be myself," he said. "Myself and nasty. Not somebody else, however jolly."
For Bernard, then, the problem with soma, and his motivation for avoiding it, is that it can affect a person’s identity. He wants...
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to feel the full range of human emotions, both positive and negative, instead of having them dulled by taking soma. He does not care that this attitude makes him appear an outsider in his society. He would rather be miserable and socially awkward than never experience real feelings.
Bernard is a kind of throwback to the pre-dystopic world. His somewhat unattractive physical appearance is considered an anomaly, leading to speculation that something went wrong during the in vitro process in his case. His personality also doesn't conform to the "perfect world" that the society is intended to be. He tends to have a self-effacing guiltiness, as if he's uncomfortable with the hedonistic values that are promoted in his society—although he embraces them at the same time, as everyone else does.
Soma represents (in medicinal form) the values of the society and its goals of artificial happiness for all. Given Bernard's against-the-grain personality, it's natural that the use of soma would be something that he's uncomfortable with and that he regards with suspicion—just as the whole society leaves him with a feeling of guilt and dissatisfaction.
A glib analysis would conclude that Bernard has an "inferiority complex" and therefore feels undeserving of the instant benefit that soma provides. He also shows signs of OCD (Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder) in little incidents like his worrying about the tap being left on in his flat. Huxley uses this for comic effect, but it indicates that, ironically, Bernard is someone who might actually need soma more than other people do.
By contrast, a person such as Lenina, who isn't inclined to inward meditation and speculation as Bernard is, has no feelings of guilt about taking soma or doing anything else, so she comes across as a kind of "model citizen" of the dystopia.
Why is soma considered bad in Brave New World?
In Aldous Huxley's classic novel Brave New World, the citizens of the World State are addicted to a recreational, mind-numbing drug called soma, which has a euphoric effect and provides a relaxing escape for the user. In the futuristic World State, a uniform society has been created to completely eliminate suffering and pain. The drug soma significantly contributes to this cause, and citizens use it to overcome their unpleasant feelings and emotions. When soma is taken in large doses, users experience pleasant hallucinations and a sense of timelessness. When John's mother returns to the World State after spending twenty years on the savage reservation, she spends the remainder of her life on a soma holiday. In extremely large doses, soma has deleterious effects and is even responsible for Linda's death.
John is opposed to soma and recognizes it as a dangerous, unnecessary drug, which creates passive, emotionally empty individuals. Rather than exercising appropriate coping mechanisms and dealing with upsetting, difficult emotions like mature adults, people consume soma to suppress their negative feelings and escape reality.
When they return from their brief soma holiday, their same issues remain, and they must consume more soma to make themselves feel better. This vicious cycle leads to addiction and helps cultivate a superficial, mindless populace. Overall, soma is negative because it strips people of their humanity and transforms them into emotionless beings who are immature and lack effective coping mechanisms.
In "Brave New World", what are Bernard's heretical views on soma and sports?
As Bernard reveals to Lenina when they are in a helicopter together, what he hates about sports and taking Soma is the way that these activities remind him that his value is only based on the extent to which he is part of the social body. What draws him to the beauty of the sea, which ironically Lenina finds so terrifying and scary, is that it helps him to imagine that he is alone and that he is measured in terms of himself rather than feeling always a part of society. Note how he expresses his view to Lenina:
"It makes me feel as though..." he hesitated, searching for words with which to express himself, "as though I were more me, if you see what I mean. More on my own, not so completely a part of something else. Not just a cell in the social body."
This of course is in complete contrast with the accept view of society, which is expressed by Lenina in the way that this society is built around a sense of community to such an extent that individualism is impossible.