A Brave New World Chapter 15

1. What does John mean when he says, "Like maggots they had swarmed defilingly over the mystery of Linda's death. (p. 209)"?

-Well, he is referring to all of the children huddling around Linda's bed, observing in amazement what is happening.

2. Why does John believe that "Linda had been a slave." (p. 210)?

-I'm not quite sure exactly, I think he is saying this because Linda was living in this world, where everyone was so amazed by her and thought so differently about her. It was almost like she was a slave in a sense, everyone looked down upon her in the same way that they would if she were a slave.

3. What does John do to bring the Delta's freedom? Who joins him?

-He throws all the soma pills out the window of the hospital. Helmholtz helps him.

4. At the end of the chapter, who is taken away by he police?

-Bernard. I also think that John and Helmholtz may have been taken as well.

A Brave New World Chapter 14

1. What is happening to Linda?

-She is dying.

2. What does John mean when he says, "when she told him those stories about the Other place, outside the Reservation: that beautiful, beautiful Other place" (p. 201)?

-He is recalling the memories where Linda used to tell him of this "Brave New World" which is where they are at now.

3. Who are the "filthy little brats" (p. 202) who anger John so much?

-These are all of the children that are coming to Linda's bed to observe death. They are making rude comments about how Linda is fat, and that her teeth are awful.

4. Please explain why "run along now and have your cup of caffeine solution" is problematic? I'm serious - I don't see the problem.

-Well it's basically the same as us drinking energy drinks, or coffee. It is making these children become addicted to caffeine, which really isn't a good thing.

5. Why don't people in the hospital understand John when he says, "Oh, God, God, God" (p. 207)?

-Because they are used to referring to "God" as "Ford," so this idea is a bit puzzling to them.

A Brave New World Chapter 13

1. What does Lenina mean when she says, "For Ford's sake John, talk sense. I can't understand a word you say. First it is vacuum cleaners; then its knots. You're driving me crazy." (p. 191)?
-Well, the way she was raised was so much different than the way John was raised, so when he beings telling her his feelings of how he likes her, she doesn't quite understand. She is confused as to whether or not he actually likes her or doesn't like her, because her world has been so different than his.



2. How does John react when Lenina makes advances towards him?
-He throws her off of him and threatens to kill her if she doesn't leave. I think that he thinks that the only reason she "likes him" is because of lust, not actual love, and this upsets JOhn, causing him to do this.

A Brave New World Chapter 12

1. In what ways does Bernard remind you of Dr. Treves or the nightwatchman in The Elephant Man?
-He reminds me of the nightwatchman in the Elephant Man because he is trying to force the savage to come out and meet all of the people, despite the fact that the savage doesn't want to. He reminds me of Dr/ Treves because he is concerned about his reputation, rather than the feeligns of the savage.

2. Why does John have to use Zuni to express how he feels?
-Because that is the only way in which he could express how he felt. Maybe it was because nobody else could understand him, or maybe it was because it was his native language. I'm not quite sure exactly why this is the only way he could express his feelings though.

3. Why does Lenina feel "a sense of dreadful emptiness, a breathless apprehension, a nausea." (p. 174)?
-Because she was expecting to get to see John, the savage, and tell him how she really felt... that she loved him more thna she had ever loved anyone else.

4. Why doesn't Mustapaha Mond want "A New theory of Biology" not to be published? Does the work remind you of anything that we have studied recently?
-Because he thinks that it is dangerous and potentially subversive. He thought that it would change the feelings of people, that people would no longer feel happy. This reminds me of the case of the creationists vs. Darwin, with the Dover school board.

5. Do you agree with Bernard's belief in the "principal functions of a friend" as described on p. 179? Why does he feel this way toward John and Helmholtz?
-I don't know if I agree with this statement or not... it depends on the friend I suppose. He feels like this towards John because he is trying to be his friend, while aslo use him to his advantage for publicity and popularity, something that he could never do to someone who he didn't know, or wasn't friends with. Also, he plans on taking revenge on Helmholtz for his generosity of becoming his friend again..

6. What does Helmholtz think of Shakespeare?
-He enjoys them... it says that he listens to them with excitement. I think he enjoys them because they are something he can relate to, becuase he also enjoys writing poetry.
-

A Brave New World Chapter 11

1. Why is Dr. Shaw glad to "have had this opportunity to see an example of senility in a human being." (155)

-Because he is getting to send Linda into eternity by dosing her with a bunch of soma. Typically this isn't permitted because the people usually have things to get done, however LInda doesn't because she is a savage. Therfore, she doesn't belong to a particular caste.

2. Why are people saying behind Bernard's back that, "he won't find another Savage to help him out a second time."

-Well, I think that they envy him slightly. Also, they probably aren't enjoying all of the attention that Bernard is getting, because it is throwing things off from the norm.

3. Why do the Eton students in the Beta-Minus geography room laugh at the religious activities of "savages"? Why do you think it is significant that there are no twins at Eton? Do you think that is still true today?

-Well, they were probably conditioned to laugh at it. It is significant that there are no twins because it is the first time that every one is actually an individual, rather than the exact replica of everyone else. And, as for today, no twin is the exact replica of someone else. But everyone is an individual today, which is what makes this sort of similiar to the fact that there aren't ant twins at Eton.

4. How do children in the World State learn about death?

-Starting at 18 months, they spend two mornings every week in a hospital where people are dying. Toys are kept there, and they recieve a special treat on the day that someone dies. This basically enables them to not be afraid of death. "They learn to take dying as a matter of course."

5. Why do lower-caste workers receive daily Soma rations? Do we do this today?

- Probably to get them to keep working. I think this is sort of like today's society... lower castes get paid minimum wage, but they are still getting paid so that they continue to work. They get extra soma on Saturday, just as some of us may get time and a half for working overtime.

6. Why does John tell Lenina that, "I don't think you ought to see things like that." (169)

-Because he doesn't want her to feel like she isn't perfect because she is not like what she is seeing.

Outline

What similarities and differences are there between Scientific and Historical Explanations?

Opening:

Overview of "what is science, versus what is history"

-Science: can experiment

-History: gathers information from the past

Ways of knowing with science and history

-science: perception, reason, language

-history: perception, language, reason (emotion?)

Mention that there are counterclaims, implications, etc

Body Paragraph 1:

Differences in the way they EXPLAIN things

-science uses deduction

->Framework- we make inferences , assume, educated guess, hypothesis, conclusion

-history uses induction

->bigger picture... why did something happen? oh, because of these certain things going on.

-science can experiment so that they can falsify a hypothesis.

-history gathers information that is already there, and make inferences upon that.

Body Paragraph 2

Similarities between the explanations

-History has two different aspects to it...

-Carr "its not history until the historian says so."

-Positivists "facts are out there waiting for the historians to discover..."

-Science has two subcategories

-Natural sciences: things such as chemistry, physics..

-Social sciences: psychology, etc.

-Both science and history pick and choose their facts.

->Historians choose which aspects of the past are "important."

->Scientists choose which variables are important to look at...

-Both science and history are constantly changing.

->Science: the theory of Darwin... now the idea of creationism?

->History: what actually caused WWII?

-Neither science nor history can "prove" something.

-Science falsifies things.

-History finds evidence to create an idea of what occurred...

Body Paragraph 3

-Counterclaims

-with history, there may be problems with the perception used, the way a person interprets things. language is translated over so many years. however, science is more "solid." no perception issues -> measurements. one pound is one pound, regardless... etc.

-Implications

-science and history have some similarities, and differences, which could affect the way we interpret certain situations

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Abel, Reuben. Man is the Measure. New York: The Free Press, 1976.

-also, the movie from class on Darwin vs. dover school board... but i don't know the name

A Brave New World Chapter 10

1. Why does the director feel unorthodoxy is worse than murder? What does the director want to do with Bernard Marx?

-With murder, only one person suffers, but with unorthodoxy many people suffer. He says that, "murder kills only the individual- and after all, what is an individual?" On the other hand, unorthodoxy threatens the entire society, which is much more significant than only harming one person. The director wants to dismiss Bernard from the center by sending him to Iceland.

2. What surprise does Bernard bring to the director?

-He brings Linda in with John, which completely humiliates the director while also making him feel ashamed.