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Definition of Irony
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this seems like a loose definition... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how... read full definition
Key Examples in Brave New World
Chapter 3
Explanation and Analysis—Religious Leaders:
In Chapter 3, while the Director is speaking to his students, a World Controller named Mustapha Mond arrives. The students become incredibly excited, as does the Director. All of them flock to Mond, ready to hang on his every word. During this scene, Huxley uses allusion to depict Mond's nearly god-like power:
His fordship Mustapha Mond! The eyes of the saluting students almost popped out of their heads. Mustapha Mond! The Resident Controller for Western Europe! One of the Ten World Controllers. One of the Ten … and he sat down on the bench with the D.H.C., he was going to stay, to stay, yes, and actually talk to them … straight from the horse’s mouth. Straight from the mouth of Ford himself.
Related Themes:
Chapter 11
Explanation and Analysis—Bernard's Fame:
In Chapter 11, Bernard takes John on a tour of Eton, accompanied by its attractive Headmistress. While on tour, Dr. Gaffney arrives and begins to discuss the operation of Slough Crematorium and the concept of death conditioning. This is an entirely new concept for John, who is unused to this society and its lack of concern for the seriousness of death. From the reader's perspective, this way of thinking about death, human individuality, and value is likely also jarring—the reader, like John, was not raised with this propaganda. Thus, when Bernard takes the time to flirt with the Headmistress in the midst of this conversation, it reads as situational irony:
Unlock with LitCharts A+‘Just returned,’ explained Dr. Gaffney, while Bernard, whispering, made an appointment with the Head Mistress for that very evening, ‘from the Slough Crematorium. Death conditioning begins at eighteen months. Every tot spends two mornings a week in a Hospital for the Dying. All the best toys are kept there, and they get chocolate cream on death days. They learn to take dying as a matter of course.’
Related Themes:
Chapter 15
Explanation and Analysis—Brave New World:
The novel's title, "Brave New World," is an allusion to The Tempest by Shakespeare. The phrase "brave new world" is spoken by the character Miranda: "O, wonder! / How many goodly creatures are there here! / How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world / That has such people in't!"
Related Themes:
Chapter 16
Explanation and Analysis—Alphas:
In Chapter 16, Mustapha Mond attempts to justify the totalitarian World State's caste system, reasoning that a society made up of independent thinkers equipped with freedom would not function, simply because no Alpha would willingly do the work of the lower castes without complaining. This is a clear instance of dramatic irony, given the reader's own probable experience in the modern world:
Unlock with LitCharts A+"‘We believe in happiness and stability. A society of Alphas couldn’t fail to be unstable and miserable. Imagine a factory staffed by Alphas—that is to say by separate and unrelated individuals of good heredity and conditioned so as to be capable (within limits) of making a free choice and assuming responsibilities. Imagine it!'"
Related Themes:
