Brave New World ,The Passion of New Eve and The Handmaids Tale Essay Example

Aldous Huxley's most famous work among his 11 novels is Brave New World, published in 1932. The title itself references a line from Shakespeare's play The Tempest, which is also quoted by the character John in the book: 'O brave new world...' (Huxley 1974:166).

In a futuristic London, the novel Brave New World presents a society in which individuals are classified as embryos based on a caste system consisting of Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta or Epsilon. Alphas hold the highest rank, with no female Alphas, and Epsilons occupy the lowest position. Through hypnopaedia, this class hierarchy is instilled in children from a young age, ensuring they instinctively understand their status and appropriate behavior; for instance, Alpha children wear grey. Being considerably intelligent, Alphas toil strenuously compared to the general population. As a Beta, I am grateful for belonging to a lower rank as it entails less arduous labor.

According to Huxley (1974: 33), we are superior to Gammas and Deltas. Gammas, who all wear green, are unintelligent, while Delta children wear Khaki. I do not want to interact with Delta children. Furthermore, epsilons are even worse as they lack the intelligence to... This sleep teaching or hypnopaedia is implemented to educate children about basic instincts and morals, which are traditionally taught by parents. In Brave New World, the concept of parenting is considered alien, as all children are created in test tubes and conditioned through sleep teaching and sexual play.

In Brave New World, the concept of having parents and giving birth to children naturally is seen as unnatural and even repulsive. This is evident in the reaction towards Linda, a Beta who has been living with

savages in the reservation for the past sixteen years and has a child. The novel challenges societal norms by presenting the idea that sex should only be for pleasure, which was considered daring in 1932, particularly when initiated by women. In this society, women are viewed as innocent and pure, while men are seen as sexual predators. Lenina and Linda are the two main female characters in Brave New World.

Lenina, a Beta Female raised in London, adheres to societal expectations of a beautiful beta woman. She engages in sexual activities with influential individuals at the fertilizing station. Despite not having undergone pregnancy substitution and consuming soma in moderation, Lenina is taken aback by her visit to the reservation alongside Bernard Marx. She is particularly horrified by Linda, an obvious London native who becomes lost, gives birth naturally, and gains weight. Linda's startling appearance upon her return to London elicits shock from many individuals, leading her to seek solace in Soma.

Initially, Lenina's purpose in Brave New World seems to be simply to exemplify how sex is portrayed, behaving as a stereotypical beautiful Beta woman. However, as the narrative unfolds, Lenina evolves into a more central figure, becoming John's love interest. John fails to comprehend the upbringing and development of Lenina and other characters in the novel, as he desires a meaningful connection and long-term commitment instead of solely seeking sexual pleasure. Lenina, due to her conditioning, lacks understanding of the notion of marriage, which greatly frustrates John as it is his ultimate desire.

The text illustrates how John expresses his love for Lenina, but she fails to comprehend his perspective on love. As a result, she

starts undressing, which clearly demonstrates the impact of her conditioning on her perception of the world. Although Linda's presence in the book is brief, her return to London and subsequent reliance on Soma lead to her demise. Nevertheless, readers can gain significant insight into her life in the reservation. The character of Linda is capable of eliciting sympathy from the reader.

The text highlights the mistreatment Linda faced in the reservation due to her upbringing. Despite being unaware of the cultural significance, she slept with some of the husbands, leading to her being attacked by the women in the community. However, readers who uphold traditional values of marriage and monogamy may not sympathize with Linda's situation. Linda's experience represents the consequences a woman can face when removed from her familiar surroundings. Angela Carter wrote The Passion of New Eve in 1977, as an extraordinary post-feminist story exploring themes of male chauvinism, cruel awakening, and sexual fixation. It is challenging to determine whether Eve, the central character, should be identified as a female as their gender changes midway through the narrative. Nevertheless, the essence of their mind seems predominantly male throughout the novel. ' (Carter cited in Luckhurst, 2005: 184)

This is exemplified when she is with Zero, expressing that "My anger kept me alive" (Carter 2003:108). In contrast to other women, she remains sane by hiding within her mind and merely surrendering her body to him. Evelyn initially lacks respect for women, evident through his inability to recall the name of the girl he was with on his last night in London. Furthermore, his treatment of Leilah, although he finds her fascinating, emphasizes his objectification

of her solely for his own pleasure. I believe that transforming into a woman does not earn him respect for women; if anything, he loses self-respect.

Mother, a captivating character in this novel, possesses a body created by her own scalpel and embodies extreme feminism with the non-consensual sex change of Evelyn and the existence of an all-female community. Initially, Mother's intention was to transform Evelyn into New Eve and then impregnate him with his own previously harvested sperm, ultimately giving birth to a new messiah. However, Eve manages to flee but gets captured and forced into another dreadful situation: a life with Zero, the one-eyed patriarch with one leg and seven 'wives' (eight once he acquires Eve).

The women of Zero are typically submissive and mind-controlled to worship him as a deity, while he regards them as inferior to animals. Zero represents the archetype of the patriarch. Tristessa, another character in the story, is someone whom Evelyn has harbored sexual fixation for since his childhood. She is consistently depicted as a woman labeled by Zero as the 'Queen of Dykes'. Zero harbors a strong aversion towards lesbians, and as the 'Queen of Dykes', Tristessa becomes his primary target.

Tristessa's palace is eventually discovered, uncovering the surprising truth that Tristessa is actually a man. Zero finds this revelation amusing, as Tristessa has been hiding his true gender behind a feminine facade throughout his career. However, Eve's reaction to this discovery is a mix of pity and love towards Tristessa. Recognizing Eve's change in attitude, Zero and his wives arrange a fake wedding for the couple. This gesture mocks the gender crisis that Tristessa is struggling with, unaware that

Eve herself is also facing a similar struggle.

As they dress Tristessa in masculine attire, he/she catches a glimpse of their former self. Reflecting on this transformation, Tristessa compares themselves to Rosalind from Shakespeare's "As You Like It", who would have been portrayed by a male actor disguised as both a woman and then as a boy when taking on the identity of Ganymede in the forest during Elizabethan times.

Before meeting her, Tristessa is depicted as an enigmatic and almost mythical being with her desert hideaway and an exquisite glass palace reminiscent of fairy tales. According to Luckhurst (2005:194), despite being biologically male, Tristessa represents femininity through cross-dressing inspired by iconic figures like Rita Hayworth, Joan Crawford, and Marilyn Monroe.

"The Handmaid's Tale" marks Margaret Atwood's sixth novel out of her twelve published works so far.Among the three mentioned authors, Atwood is the only living writer who continues to actively write. The unique aspect of The Handmaid's Tale is its portrayal of present-day life, setting it apart from Brave New World's depiction of fictional history.

The novel portrays a world where most women have been affected by radiation poisoning or sexually transmitted diseases, resulting in infertility. The women who can still bear children are referred to as handmaids and play specific roles within the society. The female characters are divided based on their attributes and responsibilities. Wives, married to Commanders, wear blue but cannot conceive. Martha's, working as household servants, wear green and are also unable to have children. Conversely, Handmaids wear red and their primary duty is to give birth on behalf of the Wives. These Handmaids occupy a low social position and lack individual names.

The text

tells the story from the perspective of a handmaid named Offred, which is a combination of the words 'Of' and her Commander Fred's name. Offred frequently refers back to the past, while the novel is set in the future, implying that the past she mentions is our present time. The women in this novel are initially portrayed as quiet and submissive, until the handmaids' support network is discovered, ultimately saving Offred's life. The book depicts being a handmaid as the ability to remain unseen. Offred successfully fulfills this role until she is required to enter the world of the commander, at which point she becomes a 'real woman' once again.

Intimacy and friendship are forbidden for handmaids, but Offred takes a risk by going to see the commander. However, not going would also be risky for her. The commander's biggest risk is when he takes Offred out, treating her like a game. If caught, it wouldn't cause him much trouble but could destroy Offred. Despite the risks, she wants to go anyway (Atwood, 1996:243). Offred reminisces about her past, mentioning her husband and daughter and recalling conversations with her mother and Moira. The Handmaid's Tale is unique in referring back to our own time. Despite being looked down upon, the handmaids hold hope, although they face pressure to conceive and risk becoming an unwoman. They wear white wings to obscure their faces and hide their identities, even from themselves.

These handmaids lack individual identities and instead belong to their commanders, who have complete control over them (Russ, 1995). In summary, I have demonstrated that, despite the futuristic elements in science fiction, the role of women is not

advancing but rather stagnating or even declining. Women in these novels once again assume passive and submissive positions (Wolmark, 1994). They are treated as objects, valued for their functionality or desirability rather than as independent individuals. Among the women I have analyzed, Eve is the least passive because she retains some male characteristics in her thinking.