In Aldous Huxley’s dystopian novel Brave New World, the world state refers to the centralised government that controls the entire planet. The world state oversees a scientifically engineered society where citizens are born and conditioned through genetic engineering and psychological manipulation. Individuality, emotions, and critical thinking are discouraged in favour of consumption, instant gratification, and conformity to the established order.
When and how was the world state established?
The world state was established around the year 2540 AD, several centuries before the events of Brave New World take place. After a period of war, economic collapse, and suffering, the world government took control and reorganized society on scientific principles of happiness and stability. Through advances in biology, psychology, and social engineering, the world state was able to create a tranquil and superficially happy society.
Key developments that enabled the world state’s establishment were:
- The perfection of cloning and embryonic selection allowed the mass production of humans with pre-selected traits.
- Conditioning techniques like sleep-learning and hypnopaedia instilled values and behaviors into people from birth.
- A caste system and production quotas were implemented to control the society.
- The drug soma was introduced to induce harmless pleasure and compliance.
- Economics were reorganized around mass production and consumption.
- Cultural homogenization eliminated old divisions and sources of conflict.
Through these and other methods of control, the world state created a unified society focused solely on physical gratification and industry. There is no war, poverty, or dissatisfaction – but also no deep emotions, relationships, or individual accomplishment.
What is the structure and leadership of the world state?
The world state is ruled autocratically by a group of 10 World Controllers. Mustapha Mond, one of the World Controllers, is a prominent character in Brave New World. The World Controllers make all decisions regarding society, economy, culture, science, and daily life.
Below the World Controllers is a caste system based on genetic engineering:
- Alphas – The top caste who are attractive, intelligent, and destined to be leaders. Alphas make up less than 5% of the population.
- Betas – The caste below Alphas who are less attractive and intelligent but serve as managers, doctors, and other professionals. Betas make up around 20% of people.
- Gammas, Deltas, and Epsilons – The lower castes of cloned laborers who are conditioned from birth to be content with menial roles.
This rigid hierarchy ensures social stability by assigning people to the roles they are conditioned for. Upward mobility between castes is almost nonexistent.
Zones and Provinces
The world state divides the planet into zones and provinces for administrative purposes. For example, London is located in the Western European zone. Zones appear to exercise some local autonomy (culture, industry, etc.) within the overarching world state framework. However, the extent of their self-governance is unclear.
How does the world state control people?
The world state uses a variety of methods to ensure social control and population compliance:
Genetic engineering
Before birth, embryos are genetically modified to fit into one of the 5 castes. Genetic destiny removes individual choice and predetermines everyone’s role in society.
Conditioning
From childhood, members of every caste are conditioned through technologies like sleep-learning and hypnopaedia to accept the values of the world state. The lower castes like Deltas undergo the most intensive conditioning to be satisfied with their lot in life.
Soma drug
All citizens consume the ubiquitous drug soma, which induces pleasant hallucinatory and sensory effects to create a sense of happiness and euphoria. It quells any dissatisfaction, anxiety, or distress people may feel.
Consumerism and entertainment
The World State promotes consumerism, sexual promiscuity, and constant entertainment like the “feelies” (movies with sensory effects) to create an environment of constant pleasure and distraction.
Surveillance
Citizens are under constant surveillance through methods like two-way TVs and listening devices to monitor any abnormal behaviors. This allows the state to quickly intervene to normalize them.
Exile of problematic individuals
Those who are dissatisfied with the system or behave antisocially are exiled to secluded islands where other like-minded individuals live. This removes disruptive influences from the main society.
Banning of strong emotion, relationships, and religion
Anything that competes with allegiance to the state, such as profound relationships, strong emotions, and religious faith are banned and conditioned out of society members from childhood.
How does the world state maintain stability and happiness?
Stability and enforced happiness are the prime directives in the world state. To achieve these ends, the state:
- Uses genetic engineering to preassign people into castes, removing competition and envy between groups.
- Conditions people to be content with their place in the hierarchy through sleep learning.
- Discourages strong emotions, self-reflection, and bonds between individuals that may cause dissatisfaction.
- Encourages constant consumption and distraction through entertainment and soma drugs.
- Eliminates disease, aging, and physical discomfort through technology so there are no natural sources of unhappiness.
- Implements quotas and production systems to avoid economic instability.
- Allows some degree of sexual freedom to provide an outlet for desires.
- Exiles any individuals who may foster unhappiness or instability in others.
Together, these measures produce shallow but real contentment among the vast majority by removing sources of uncertainty, want, and potential dissatisfaction.
What is family life like the world state?
Natural family relationships have been abolished in the world state. Instead:
- Reproduction happens through genetic engineering in hatcheries, so there are no traditional parents.
- Children are raised communally in conditioning centers, grouped by caste.
- Promiscuity is encouraged from early ages and emotional bonds are discouraged.
- Marriage, parenthood, and pregnancy are considered obscene. Terms like “mother” and “father” are taboo.
- Sex is recreational, with contraceptives required and pregnancy strongly discouraged.
Without family loyalty or parents passing on values, the state has direct control over conditioning and socializing the next generation.
How does the world state view individuality?
Individuality and uniqueness are seen as flaws interfering with stability. The state takes steps to remove or redirected individuality:
- Cloning and genetic engineering produce batches of nearly identical individuals.
- Conditioning instills conformist thought and behavior.
- Creativity and intellectualism are limited to only useful forms like production innovations.
- Accomplishment is collective, through fulfilment of caste duties.
- Individuals are discouraged from strong emotions, opinions, or desires.
- Personal relationships are casual, discouraged from becoming too meaningful.
- Mental illness and nonconformity are swiftly corrected.
This homogenization allows the state to function without disruptive variation or self-actualization seeking among the population.
What kind of culture and entertainment exists?
Culture is manufactured by the state according to principles of consumption and distraction. Traditions and folk culture have been erased.
Forms of entertainment include:
- The Feelies – movies that provide physical sensations along with visual and auditory input for full immersion.
- Erotic play – open and frequent sexual activity is encouraged.
- Sports – non-contact sports and games are popular.
- Soma holidays – holidays where soma rations are increased to induce near-constant euphoria.
- Consumption – citizens are conditioned to enjoy acquiring and experiencing new goods and products.
The arts are mostly pragmatic forms like state propaganda. History and religion are dismissed as irrelevant to the present.
How does the caste system work?
The genetically engineered caste system has 5 levels:
| Caste | Roles | Population |
|---|---|---|
| Alphas | Leaders and top administrators | Less than 5% |
| Betas | Skilled professionals and managers | Around 20% |
| Gammas | Semi-skilled administrators | Unspecified |
| Deltas | Unskilled laborers | Unspecified |
| Epsilons | Menial drudge workers | Unspecified |
Alphas and Betas are carefully engineered to be attractive, intelligent, and ambitious. Gammas, Deltas, and Epsilons are bred to be less cognitively capable and content with subordinate roles. Segregation between the castes is enforced from birth.
Members of each caste are further conditioned to be happy with their work and place. Upward mobility is almost nonexistent, however Alphas can occasionally sink to lower caste levels if they fail to fulfill expectations.
What is the Bokanovsky Process?
The Bokanovsky Process is a method of cloning humans to produce large numbers of genetically identical individuals.
Key aspects of the process include:
- Embryos are multiplied into up to 96 identical clones.
- Clones are made to fulfill demand for different castes.
- Cell division is arrested to intentionally stunt clone growth and intelligence.
- The goal is to create genetically identical drone workers for simple labor.
Bokanovsky groups, or clones made from the same egg, have identical genetic predispositions. This reinforces the caste system and makes social control easier.
Example
A single fertilized egg can be converted into:
- 12 identical Delta clones
- 36 identical Epsilon clones
- Or up to 96 clones
This mass production provides the population needed for a stable economy and workforce.
What is Neo-Pavlovian Conditioning?
Neo-Pavlovian conditioning is the primary method used in Brave New World to mentally condition citizens from birth. It is based on Ivan Pavlov’s principles of classical conditioning.
Key techniques include:
- Sleep-learning – Messages are repeated to children during sleep to shape attitudes and behavior.
- Hypnopaedia – Messages are played during activities like meals and exercise to reinforce behaviors.
- Pleasure-pain association – Social taboos are given negative associations, while conformity is associated with reward.
- Infant conditioning – From the moment of birth, conditioning shapes children toward society’s needs.
For example, the chant “Everybody works for everybody else” constantly reinforces the duty to work. Through associations, neo-Pavlovian conditioning powerfully shapes citizens into accepting their roles.
Results
Conditioning results in:
- Acceptance of the caste system
- Enjoyment of work and consumption
- Orthodoxy and conformity to social norms
- Weak individual identity
- Lack of emotional depth
This produces a compliant, docile population serving the world state’s needs.
What is soma and what are its effects?
Soma is a hallucinogenic drug used routinely by all citizens in Brave New World. It has the following effects:
- Euphoria, pleasure, and contentment
- Muscle relaxation
- Wakeful dreaming/hallucinations
- Emotional pacification and inability to feel negative emotions during the high
- Hangover and after-effects are negligible
Soma provides an easy escape from negative emotions like stress, anxiety, and depression. It also enhances all activities like work and leisure, making everything more pleasurable.
Daily soma rations are included in the welfare state, or can be purchased for cheap. During stressful periods like moving between castes, rations are increased to prevent discomfort. Major soma holidays are also arranged periodically.
By keeping the population in a harmless state of euphoria and contentment, soma maintains social stability and negates the need for independence or personal freedom.
Quotes About Soma
“There is always soma to calm your anger, to reconcile you to your enemies, to make you patient and long-suffering.”
“What you need is a gramme of soma.”
“All the advantages of Christianity and alcohol; none of their defects.”
What kind of economy and production exists?
The world state has a centralized, planned economy optimized for creating social stability and mass consumption. Key economic factors include:
- Centralized production planning and quotas for different goods.
- Caste-based workforce performs assigned economic roles.
- Overproduction of luxury goods to create abundant supply.
- High wages across all castes to enable consumption.
- Planned obsolescence – products break down after a period to spur more consumption.
- advertising is ubiquitous to promote consumption and indulgence.
This economy is designed around constant production, consumption, and waste. But it avoids class envy, lack of access to goods, or overconsumption of resources that could destabilize society.
Conclusion
In Brave New World, the world state oversees a scientifically engineered, precisely controlled society organized around stability, happiness, and consumerism. Individuality and strong emotion are discouraged in favor of conformity, casual relations, pleasure, and consumption. People are bred and conditioned from birth into a caste system to be content with their roles serving the social order. Surveillance, soma drugs, genetic engineering, and neo-Pavlovian conditioning reinforce obedience. Culture focuses on distraction and indulgence. While shallow, this society achieves the world state’s goals of eliminating war, poverty, and unhappiness through totalitarian social control.