Brave New World Discussion Questions: Chapter 6-9
Working with a partner, please answer the following questions on separate sheet of paper.
Questions for Chapter 6
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Why does Lenina consider Bernard so "odd"? (consider the specifics as well as the general reason.)
Why is Bernard's "mania...for doing things in private" a problem, or something to fear in BNW?
On their helicopter trip to the Savage Reservation, why is Lenina so desperate to turn on the radio?
Discuss the significance of Bernard's response to the sea and Lenina's comment about the "social body".
What kind of slavery is mentioned in this chapter? Does this exist today?
What images of or hints about the Savage Reservation are given here? What do you imagine it to be at this
point?
Questions for Chapter 7
7. Discuss Lenina's relationship to nature and technology.
8. What are the possible meanings of the phrase: "civilization is sterilization"?
9. Why does Lenina react so strongly to the old man and John's mother? What seems to be the BNW approach to
aging?
10. What animals are mentioned and what might each represent for the Savages?
11. What do we discover about the DHC in this chapter?
12. What is the meaning of the phrases "mending's anti-social" and"the more stitches, the less riches"? Do we have
simmilar slogans and attitudes today?
Questions for Chapter 8
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What do you make of the women whipping Linda? Why might they do this?
Why does Linda scream when she finds "little animals" in John's hair?
Why does Linda dream of "the Other Place"?
How would you describe the savage religion?
What is the significance of the first verse of Shakespeare that John reads?
Who is Mitsima and what is his most important lesson?
What is "Antelope Kiva" and what happens there?
What is John expressing when he quotes Miranda in Shakespeare's Tempest: "O brave new world" and how
does Bernard's final question connect?
Questions for Chapter 9
21. What do you know about soma , both as it functions in the novel and as an historical substance? What drugs are
most like soma in regards to their function in society?
22. Describe Bernard's behavior as he interacts with the Warden - why does he act this way?
23. What is happening to John when he discovers Lenina and quotes Shakespeare?
24. Discuss the significance of each Shakespeare quote as it relates to John's situation.