This book is touted as a sort of a sequel to The Brave New World (TBNW).
i would however like to point out a few differences.
where the TBNW is insightful, The Island is not.
where the TBNW is one of the most perfectly crafted piece of literature known to man, The Island is shoddy in its style.
where the TBNW makes you think, The Island is prosaic at best.
in short, if you pick up the book because you loved The Brave New World, you are going to be sorely disappointed.
The Brave New World described a hypothetical end product of modern development. the place where western civilisation is headed. science is the new religion, freud and ford (epitomised as one person) are the new messiahs.
The Island talks about just the exact opposite. of a place where the perfect balance is achieved. everything is hunky-dory... the utopia.
while Huxley excels in the first, he fails miserably in the second.
why?
here’s what I think. Huxley being the quintessential critic is brilliant in pointing out the defects of the system. in providing a solution, like any critic, he fails.
we are all therefore forced to admit that he doesn’t have the answer.