Analysis of major characters in 1984 Essay -- essays research papers

Analysis of Major Characters John - Although Bernard Marx <javascript:CharacterWindow('http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/bravenew/terms/char_2.html', '0b1405ef1f', 500);> is the primary character in Brave New World up until his visit with Lenina <javascript:CharacterWindow('http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/bravenew/terms/char_4.html', '55db940fc2', 500);> to the Reservation, after that point he fades into the background and John becomes the central protagonist. John first enters the story as he expresses an interest in participating in the Indian religious ritual from which Bernard and Lenina recoil. John's desire first marks him as an outsider among the Indians, since he is not allowed to participate in their ritual. It also demonstrates the huge cultural divide between him and World State society, since Bernard and Lenina see the tribal ritual as disgusting. John becomes the central character of the novel because, rejected both by the "savage" Indian culture and the "civilized" World S tate culture, he is the ultimate outsider. As an outsider, John takes his values from a more than 900-year-old author, William Shakespeare. John's extensive knowledge of Shakespeare's works serves him in several important ways: it enables him to verbalize his own complex emotions and reactions, it provides him with a framework from which to criticize World State values, and it provides him with language that allows him to hold his own against the formidable rhetorical skill of Mustapha Mond during their confrontation. On the other hand, John's insistence on viewing the world through Shakespearean eyes sometimes blinds him to the reality of other characters, notably Lenina, who, in his mind, is alternately a heroine and a "strumpet," neither of which label is quite appropriate to her.) Shakespeare embodies all of the human and humanitarian values that have been abandoned in the World State. John's rejection of the shallow happiness of the World State, his inability to reconcile his love and lust for Lenina, and even his eventual suicide all reflect themes from Shakespeare. He is himself a Shakespearean character in a world where any poetry that does not sell a product is prohibited. John's naà ¯ve optimism about the World State, expressed in the words from The Tempest that constitute the novel's title, is crushed when he comes into direct co... ...ention of mothers, fathers, and marriage-concepts that are vulgar and ridiculous in the World State. The conversations between Helmholtz illustrate that even the most reflective and intelligent World State member is defined by the culture in which he has been raised. Mustapha Mond - Mustapha Mond is the most powerful and intelligent proponent of the World State. Early in the novel, it is his voice that explains the history of the World State and the philosophy upon which it is based. Later in the novel it is his debate with John that lays out the fundamental difference in values between World State society and the kind of society represented in Shakespeare's plays. Mustapha Mond is a paradoxical figure. He reads Shakespeare and the Bible and he used to be an independent-minded scientist, but he also censors new ideas and controls a totalitarian state. For Mond, humankind's ultimate goals are stability and happiness, as opposed to emotions, human relations, and individual expression. By combining a firm commitment to the values of the World State with a nuanced understanding of its history and function, Mustapha Mond presents a formidable opponent for John, Bernard and Helmholtz.