Chapter ten opens with the Director speaking about Bernard. The Director says “the greater a man’s talents, the greater his power to lead astray. It is better that one should suffer than that many should be corrupted” (pg 137) I took this as the Director feeling very threatened by Bernard and how he is different from the World State. I think what the Director meant by “the greater his power to lead astray” is that because Bernard is different and he’s not trying to be the same as everyone else, he will try to influence others on having a different life, outside the World State. We as readers know what Bernard feels about the caste systems, promiscuity, personal relationships and family. I think that the Director is scared Bernard will try to convince people to join with him and rebel against the World State.
These concepts of family and personal relationships, which are something very normal to have in real life, is actually forbidden in the World State. There is no such thing as “family” because there is no natural birth, but the Bokanovsky process. Promiscuity is what should go on in this society, I think this is so people don’t start having feelings for one another. What I took from the Director saying “It is better that one should suffer than that many should be corrupted” (pg 137) is that its the right thing to do to send Bernard away to Iceland, so he will be gone from the World State. I think what the Director meant by “corrupted” is that because Bernard is a smart person he may have an influence on others on disagreeing with how the World State is “operated” and if people start seeing that, they will corrupt the World State and want to change it.
Continuing reading chapter ten, Bernard gets back from his “holiday” and meets with the Director and many other people in the World State. Bernard brings Linda and John with him. I think this was to try and sabotage the Director for sending him away. Linda walks through the door and everyone in the room was horrified, they couldn’t believe what they were seeing. Linda starts calling the Director by his real name Tomakin, she says that he made her have a baby! (pg 140) The Director automatically starts making it like Linda is crazy and denies everything because he is in front of all the people of the World State. John then walks in and yells “My Father” (pg 140) This revealed that even the Director of the World State, doesn’t follow the rules, he fathered a child, without Bokanovsky process. This really showed the inconsistencies and the conflicts of the World State. Bernard is standing up for himself and I feel that it’s his own personal payback when he brings Linda and John to the Director.
After reading chapter eleven, I found many aspects interesting. On page 148 Bernard writes about John “The Savage”, Bernard writes about how John doesn’t want to take soma, and he writes about Linda, John’s mother. What I found interesting was that Bernard doesn’t even write out the word mom, but he writes m – -. This concept of family is still so foreign to Bernard, but he did imagine what life would be like having a real family in previous chapters.
Another thing that interested me was when Dr. Gaffney, Miss Keate and The Provost were all giving John “the Savage” a tour of Lupton’s Tower and the school. While walking by the school library, John asks if the students read Shakespeare and quickly the Head Mistress answers with “certainly not” while blushing. (pg 150) Dr. Gaffney says the library “contains only books of reference. If our young people need distraction, they can get it at the feelies. We don’t encourage them to indulge in any solitary amusements.” (pg 150) In the real world Shakespeare is highly read and a very popular writer, and when John asks about Shakespeare the others act like Shakespeare doesn’t even exist.
What I got from this weeks reading is that Bernard’s character is changing. He is starting to associate with others, but he did say he liked being alone. He is becoming popular with the people around him. I also saw that Lenina is changing and she says “because you see, Fanny, I like him” (pg 153) Before Fanny was always following what she was supposed to do in the World State, not wanting to be different like Bernard.
