Sex and Relationships Essay -- Literary Analysis, Brave New World

Both Brave New World and 1984 incorporate the themes of sex and relationships. However, the way they are perceived in both novels is quite different. The main dichotomies occur in the function of sex for reproduction, in relationships, and in the concept of a family. However, what is surprising that although the two books can be considered diametrically opposite to each other, they seem to agree on the aversion to the human emotions that develop in a relationship and those that develop from sexual intercourse respectively. In Brave New World, sex is completely separate from reproduction. Babies are mass-produced in Hatcheries such as the Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Centre and most are made â€Å"freemartins†; consequently, it is not physically possible to conventionally reproduce. The females who are not rendered sterile are obliged to wear â€Å"Malthusian belts† to avoid any pregnancies. In fact, giving birth is considered exceptionally humiliating and degrading, not to mention blasphemous. This is best seen in Linda’s extreme reluctance to return to the World State (specifically London) after giving birth to John. Instead, sex is considered as more of a social activity than as a means of reproduction. In contrast, sex in 1984 is used only for reproduction. The Party fears that the sex instinct (which is born out of mutual love between two people) will have a deleterious effect on the energy and zeal required to support Big Brother and the Party’s propaganda. Thus, it is diligently bottled up and converted into love for the Party and Big Brother. Also, â€Å"sexual intercourse [is] looked on as a slightly disgusting operation, like an enema† (Orwell 57) because the Party views it as a hindranc... ...’re happy inside yourself, why should you get excited about Big Brother and the Three Year Plans and the Two Minutes Hate and all the rest of their bloody rot?† (Orwell 111). This could potentially lead to a rebellion and thus the Party could be overthrown. This is exactly what it wants to prevent, so it takes great pains to repress the emotions that could develop by having sex by abolishing sex altogether. Therefore, the themes of sex and relationships have been twisted and marred to such a degree that their meanings have fundamentally changed. For both Brave New World and 1984 respectively, the function of sex has been altered to suit the needs of the totalitarian government, relationships have become a mere shadow of what they were in the past, and the idea of a family has been tarnished. Consequently, they are quite significant themes in both books.