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Brave New World

Summary:   We learn from Brave New World, Toronto at Dreamer's Rock and Lion King that wisdom figures can twist the entire outcome of a story. In these three tales, it is shown that being a valuable guide figure must offer the hero with support, insight and encouragement during appropriate situations throughout the heroic journey.

Guide Figures Essay:

Thesis

The epic hero of The Odyssey, Odysseus is able to reunite lovingly with his faithful wife, Penelope. However there will be major differences to the outcome without Odysseus's most powerful ally, Athena. Frequently appearing throughout "The Odyssey", she offers instructions, encouragements, and tests to Odysseus to ensure he is successful. Perhaps Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom, is the most valuable guide and wisdom figure in the mythic tradition. Similar to Athena, guide figures in many novels today provide support, insight and encouragement into the proper course of action for each hero in respective stories. While mentors' helps are limited by powers beyond their own, the majority of them allow their companions to make their own way and to discover the power that lies hidden within themselves. These roles of guiding characters are apparent inside the texts of Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, Toronto at Dreamer's Rock by Drew Hayden Taylor, and film of Lion King directed by Roger Allers.

1st Para

First of all, it is the support presented by the guide figure that assists the hero.

BNW: John is in extreme danger as a group of Deltas are ganging up on him due to his revealing of his rebellion against the society by throwing away the somas. Luckily Helmholtz comes to help: "Helmholtz Watson pushed his way through the crowd" (Huxley 195). This shows how Helmholtz was willing to risk himself and yet provide physical support for John.

Toronto at Dreamer's Rock: Rusty exposes how stressful his life is during his conversation with Michael and Keesic. But they are there to support him by listening to Rusty's grief and sorrow: "'The hardest thing I ever had to deal with was my father'" (Taylor 61). Michael and Keesic try to think of solutions for Rusty, however unsuccessful.

Lion King: Timon and Pumbaa are very close friends to Simba, or rather the only friends of Simba. Since they find out that Simba is about to deal with great trouble, they offer their help without having Simba to ask for it: "'Well, Simba, if it's important to you, then we're with you to the end'" (Allers). They are willing to risk their lives and enter the Pride Rock to support Simba fights.

2nd Para

Secondly, in many cases, the wisdom figure provides insight to the hero.

BNW: Mond shows John the insight of the society they live in. He tries to persuade John into accepting the ways how the society runs. "'God isn't compatible with machinery and scientific medicine and universal happiness... Our civilization has chosen machinery and medicine and happiness'" (Huxley 214). He clarifies the idea of society and how even though their society may seem immoral, there is happiness; uses "God" as an argument to show the vast importance of this issue in which Mond is trying to persuade John.

Toronto at Dreamer's Rock: "Rusty, this is your summer. And spring belongs before it, and fall afterwards." (Taylor 74) Near the end, Keesic tries to explain to Rusty that the present is his time, and that he should make the best of it.

Lion King: "'Pride Rock is in shambles, no food, water'" (Allers). By decribing her poor living circumstances, Nala tries to let Simba understand the neediness of him. Shows how Simba is extremely needed in the Pride Rock in order to help the lions gain back what is theirs from evil ruler Scar. This is for the good of the lion society.

3rd Para

Frequently the hero receives encouragement from the mentor throughout the heroic journey.

BNW: Helmholtz provides mental encouragement to Bernard through their conversation: "What the two men shared was the knowledge that they were individuals. But whereas the physically defective Bernard had suffered all his life from the consciousness of being separate, it was only quite recently that, grown aware of his mental excess, Helmholtz Watson had also become aware of his difference from the people who surrounded him." (Huxley 61) Helmholtz tries to comfort Bernard by telling Bernard that he is not alone while also encourages him to strive continually for success.

Toronto at Dreamer's Rock: Michael encourages Rusty to persist with his life: "'This information will affect your life, maybe negatively at this crucial and formative stage. I don't think it's advisable at the moment'" (Taylor 57). Michael is providing some facts from the future which allows Rusty to believe that life is more worthwhile, since many troubles bother him at this point.

Lion King: Rafiki is the guide for Simba and encourages him to go back to his kingdom where his people need him: "'Oh yes, the past can hurt. But the way I see it, you can either run from it, or... learn from it'" (Allers). Rafiki explains to Simba that he should not forget about his past and must go back to save the society of his.

Conclusion

We learn from Brave New World, Toronto at Dreamer's Rock and Lion King that wisdom figures can twist the entire outcome of a story. In these three tales, it is shown that being a valuable guide figure must offer the hero with support, insight and encouragement during appropriate situations throughout the heroic journey. Although the hero may argue or disagree with the idea given from his guide, the mentor will try his best to aid the hero to strive for success. Since this is one of the main reasons why wisdom figures exist, many of the great myths in the English literature follows such pattern. In The Odyssey, for instance, Athena who is known as the goddess of wisdom frequently appears and tries her best to assist Odysseus to reunite with his wife. Due to her existence, Odysseus is given great amount of helps and ultimately, he is able to reach his wife. However, the majority of guide figures in many stories never seem to be rewarded the way heroes do. Would this be a bad factor? If not, then why would anyone want to be the wisdom figure of a story"

First of all, authors believe that due to political developments, the society will become to directional to allow humans to have lives of their own. Everyday, people try to make changes to the government and strive for more improvements. Initially, this is a decent way to allow management within each country/area to enhance its operation and to benefit citizens at the highest level. However, if such advancements are to be developed too excessively, then the public will rather suffer from them than to gain. This idea of people being threatened by the politic can be seen in Brave New World as Bernard Marx attends his Solidarity Service. This service is similar to a church service yet much more cult-like in its nature. The climax of this quasi-religious ceremony is when everyone begins to chant, "'Orgy-porgy, Ford and fun, Kiss the girls and make them One. Boys at 0ne with girls at peace; Orgy-porgy gives release'" (Huxley 92). This "orgy-porgy" song is mandatory, which also demonstrates how the government in the Brave New world controls the sexual behavior of the citizens of the World State. In addition, this song is a representative of how the government controls both religion and sexual practice. A similar case is shown in Nineteen Eighty-Four: "Newspeak, doublethink, the mutability of the past" (Orwell 28). In the place where Winston Smith lives, the word "doublethink" exists in their language known as the "Newspeak." "Doublethink" is the major way the Party, or the government, controls its members in Oceania. Through doublethink, people consciously accept anything the Party tells them, even if it contradicts something they already know. Furthermore, they deliberately suppress any thought or information that goes against anything the Party says. To complete the cycle, they must forget that they have even used doublethink. For example, in April of 1984, Oceania is at war with Eurasia; citizens must force themselves to remember that they have always been at war with Eurasia, despite the fact that Oceania was allied with Eurasia four years before. Failure to control their thoughts using doublethink would result in Thoughtcrime. Therefore, the Party has much control of its people, including the minds of every citizen. This quote from Education is Our Right also explains how a government can hold control of its people to a great extent: "'Yes, times change, but not always for better. You people come to our shores, everything change. Nothing same any more, including education'" (Taylor 96). From this, the Spirit of Education Past states how other people come to take their land. Furthermore, they develop the government and make a lot of changes towards the Native society, including their education system. This clearly illustrates that the power which lies in the hands of the government can be used poorly and cause intimidations to the public. From the above proofs, one can evidently realize that governments do not only systematize an area, but as well as its people. Whether it is the way on how people think or how they act, the political parties have more than enough power to hold management of them, which ultimately causes threats.

Secondly, in many cases due to social issues, the society itself will sink into extreme weakness. A society, or the community, is where people interact with others in many ways. For instance, a couple of friends at a neighbourhood may decide to go to a mall after school to experience some fun. Some may join community events such as music festivals; others may simply play basketball at a neighbour's driveway. Most importantly, they have freedom. But why would this become threats to the society? It is because of the strange systems in which some society runs in. For example, in Brave New World, it is evident that the people have no freedom, but must submit to the will of the World Controllers. The Director adds, "'All conditioning aims at that: making people like their inescapable social destiny'" (Huxley 16). Obviously this system has far surpassed communism and any other totalitarian-like societies for ultimate power. This system, he brags, "'is one of the major instruments of social stability'" (Huxley 22). In other words, such Brave New world becomes under control by both science and its government. Likewise, citizens always result in depression due to the way the society runs in Nineteen Eighty-Four. Party Members such as Winston Smith have no true friends and are always being anxious about people spying on him. This statement can be proven from this quote: "It was enough that she was watching him" (Orwell 105). Being Party members, they are often under surveillance by the telescreens to ensure their truthfulness to Big Brother. It is because of this reason that they cannot make true friends, to avoid others to realize what one is in fact thinking of. In Education is Our Right, Education Past attempts to illustrate that there is some going wrong with the society, the Native's society. "'Children kidnapped, taken to religious schools. Beaten, sexually abused, all approved and encouraged by government. This is a way of education'" (Taylor 97)? Some of the awful incidents being done on Natives can actually be tolerated within the society. Therefore, the community has become a tremendous threat to the Natives, and the three Spirits have hope in of Mr. Cadieux, minister of Indian Affairs, to alter this crisis. It is obvious from the three given situations that, society changes as human changes. Originally, people create the society. But if adjustments are to be made incorrectly, the society will bring trouble. Then the humans have basically cast a social threat upon themselves.

Finally, authors believe that technology advancements will place a threat on the public. Technological systems are not determined by advances in knowledge, but by social interests and needs. It begins with a need and ends with a solution. This way technology is shaped by the society, by consumers' choices. However in some cases, technology shapes the society. The technology of the motor car, for example, has shaped our environment and our whole way of life. Correspondingly, such example can be drawn out from Brave New World. During the outset of this novel, it explains that people are not born but in fact made from tubes. Since people in this society are genetically divided into caste system (Alphas, Betas, Gammas, Deltas, Epsilons), the Hatchery decides to use "torturing" process to educate the lower class members: "He waved his hand again, and the Head Nurse pressed a second lever. The screaming of the babies suddenly changed its tone" (Huxley 18). With the convenience of futuristic technology in their hands, the Hatchery is capable of producing mankind, into any forms as they wish. Moreover, by using the "torturing" system, the Hatchery has the command over its people while also plays role of the government. On the contrary, situation established in Nineteen Eighty-Four is a little different. As technology enhances, the public are not threatened directly from the Parties, but are pressurized from the telescreens. The surveillance level increases and therefore the privacy of citizens decreases. All throughout the story, Winston is constantly in fear of their technology: "There was of course no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given moment" (Orwell 4-5). They are found in all rooms belonging to Party members, and in public places. No one knows how often the Thought Police tap into any individual wire, it is therefore possible that they watch all screens all the time. It tells about the dangers of the advancements in technology and cautions about the destruction of private lives in Oceania. This concept of bringing threats to the society due to technology also takes place in Education is Our Right, shown in this quote: "'This your television when boy. You spend many hours looking here. Saw many things, made you laugh, cry, scare you. And what you remember about them? About the Indians'" (Taylor 91)? Here, Spirit of the Past tries to confirm to Cadieux that through television, the thoughts of the public may be altered. It is because of this, the Natives do not hold their proper rights in terms of freedom and education. Traditionally, technology provides solutions to the society's needs. Conversely, based on the above examples, it is proven that technology provides solutions only to some restricted (ex. governments), while many of the solutions are well against the society.