Topic > A dystopian satire of government: "Brave New World" and "The Body Snatchers"

The composers undermine institutions of power to show the unethical values ​​of government with rigorous and systematic control, while also conveying how this affects the society's behaviors through creating a lack of individualism. Aldous Huxley's novel "Brave New World" conveys a dystopian satire of governments that limit personal autonomy. Jack Finney's short story "The Body Snatcher's" depicts a science fiction alien invasion and the threat of communist infiltration into American society. Both composers manipulate textual form with the aim of weakening systems of power and at the same time highlighting to the reader how rigid control limits personal autonomy. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Composers undermine social institutions of power in an attempt to critique the immoral nature of government. Authoritarian control in dictatorial societies began to emerge during World War I and influenced Huxley's novel "Brave New World." Huxley criticizes a dictatorial government that confines individuals and forces them to conform to rigid rules to show reading that limits independent thought. Huxley criticizes Mond's authoritarian control in his discussion with the Savage when he states that "our civilization has chosen machines, medicine and happiness" where the irony is created in the link between mass consumption and artificial happiness, as well as in the fact that people didn't. they have a choice, they were predetermined. The use of irony highlights to the audience Huxley's criticism of Mond's authoritarian control and his propaganda used to justify it. Mond also argues that "you can't make machines without steel and you can't have tragedies without social instability", which highlights to the audience the irony that Mond's argument recognizes the beauty of tragedy, but condemns instability social. Huxley criticizes Mond's support of an imperfect social system, which undermines authoritarian control within society. This emphasizes the inhumane and unethical control of the government and pushes the reader to reject these organizations. Jack Finney's "The Body Snatchers" similarly critiques the institutions of power within his text to reveal the unethical nature of government. Finney uses the concept of monotony, alluding to industrialization and the workers' utopia of the USSR to criticize a government that uses capitalist desires as a distraction from the fear of the Cold War. Finney criticizes a government and its encouragement of consumerist culture that is used to avoid the price of communist ideological infiltration instilled in the working class. Miles Bennel comments on the advertisement for “bananas, laundry soap, Niblets… pots, pans, electric blenders”, the accumulation highlights to the public the link that is being created between domestic life and a calm falseness for the working underclass, used as distraction from the cold fear of war, and the “normal” appearance of “body-snatching aliens” echoes in the plot. Finney criticizes consumer culture, undermining the authoritarian institutions of power that reject the fears of its people. This highlights to the reader the immoral nature of governments that disregard the voices of citizens and promote a culture that devalues ​​them. Both composers reveal the unethical nature of authoritarian societies through satire on social systems within their lyrics. The composers explore how a loss of individualism as a result of conformity and unity, changes the behavior of individuals within their society as there is a loss of autonomy.