Brave New World: Chapter 12

The color-coded bars in this section make it easy to track the themes throughout the work. Each color corresponds to one of the themes explained in the Themes section of this LitChart. For instance, indicates that all five themes apply to that part of the summary.

Summary Analysis Themes

At a party Bernard throws so people can meet the Savage, John refuses to leave his room. When it’s clear that the Savage won’t show, the guests get angry at Bernard, to whom they were being polite only because they wanted to meet the Savage. The Arch-Community-Songster, an important guest, warns Bernard to “mend his ways.”

Bernard discovers that he can never truly be a part of the conformity of the World State culture. He’s stuck with his individuality.

Lenina leaves with the Songster. She thinks the Savage refused to come out because he doesn’t like her.

Lenina’s unfulfilled desires make her question herself.

Meanwhile, elsewhere, Mustapha Mond decides an ingenious paper on biology is too ingenious and won’t let it be published.

Even as John’s presence disrupts society, Mond continues to control and regulate it.

After the failure of his party, Bernard goes back to being his old self: nervous, alone, melancholy. The Savage and Helmholtz accept his apologies (Bernard is a little jealous that they can be so forgiving). Meanwhile, Helmholtz is also in a bit of trouble. He recently read a poem he wrote about being alone to some of his students, who reported him. He seems excited about it.

For their opposite reasons, Helmholtz and Bernard continue to conflict with World State Society: Bernard because he’s forced to, Helmholtz because he keeps pushing against the rules of conformity.

Helmholtz and the Savage like each other immensely, and Helmholtz is mesmerized by Shakespeare. Romeo and Juliet, however, makes Helmholtz laugh. The entire plot strikes him as ridiculous. But then he realizes that what he needs are exactly these “ridiculous, mad situations” to make his own writing more powerful.

Helmholtz sees that the powerful emotions eliminated by constant happiness are the source of mankind’s greatest accomplishments.