Reading the Classics #78: Aldous Huxley
Hey everyone, welcome again to Reading the Classics! I know it’s been a long time. I’m kinda trying to figure out what direction to take this series, and my blog itself, in the future. Wordpress is a possibility, and my friend’s gonna show me how to use it. I also mean to spend less time on this site in the future, so moving my blog would make sense. I’ll figure it out though. Until then, I’ll try to keep putting stuff out for you. So, today’s post will be on Aldous Huxley, most famous for his novel Brave New World. Huxley was born July 26th, 1894 in Surrey, England to two teachers. From a young age he would engage in deep thought and discussion, causing other kids to make fun of him. He also suffered from an eye condition. After graduating from Oxford, Huxley became a tutor and author, publishing his first novel (Chrome Yellow) in 1921. His most popular novel (And the one I’ll be reviewing today), Brave New World, was published in 1932. In 1937, he moved to Hollywood with his wife and son, and continued to live in America until his death. He was involved in several films, including a 1940 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice and a 1944 Jane Eyre. Huxley also met important people of the time, like George Orwell and Walt Disney. Upon Huxley’s death in 1963, his death and funeral were greatly overshadowed, due to Kennedy being assassinated just a few hours later. He is buried in Surrey with the rest of his family. But enough about him, let’s get to reviewing one of his books.
1. Brave New World
At the moment, the only thing by Aldous Huxley I’ve read is Brave New World. It was… an interesting book to read. Published in 1932, it’s a dystopian novel set around 600 years in the future. This futuristic society seems perfect on the outside, but a closer look reveals one just as corrupt as the one we live in today. Bernard Marx, a popular psychologist, takes a vacation to a Reservation in New Mexico, where natives are untouched by the future. There he meets Linda and John, and finds out Linda was made pregnant by Bernard’s boss. The three of them return to the World State (As the “perfect” society is called); John, having had no experience with that level of technology, becomes a spectacle and a celebrity just how Native Americans were to the first European arrivals. From there things just spiral downward, and without giving too much away, I can say that it’s a bit of a ride. In terms of Dystopian novels, it’s pretty good. Definitely not as good as 1984, but worth reading. I will admit that it was pretty weird though. Like for example, babies are artificially created, which removes the roles of parents in the World State. Just stuff like that was weird, it almost feels like Huxley was on something when he wrote this book. Anyway, you should go ahead and read this book. It’s worth your time.
I would love to read more of Aldous Huxley in the future. Chrome Yellow would be fun, as well as The Doors of Perception. Two fun facts about the latter title, legendary singer Jim Morrison was inspired to name his band The Doors after reading it, and in Doctor Strange Stan Lee has a cameo of him reading that novel. Anyway, I’m sorry this post is so short. Life’s been a bit weird. And like I said, I’m trying to figure out what to do with my blog. Chance are I’ll move it away from here, but idk where to. As always, thank you for reading, and I’ll see you next time! Enjoy Valentines Day!
1387-1400- The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer
1589-1593- The Two Gentlemen of Verona by William Shakespeare
1590-1592- The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare
1591- Henry VI Part 1 by William Shakespeare
Henry VI Part 2 by William Shakespeare
Henry VI Part 3 by William Shakespeare
1592-1594- The Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare
1593- Richard III by William Shakespeare
Titus Andronicus by William Shakespeare
Venus and Adonis by William Shakespeare
1594- The Rape of Lucrece by William Shakespeare
1595- A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare
Richard II by William Shakespeare
1595-1596- Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
1596-1599- The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare
1597- The Merry Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare
1598- Henry IV Part I by William Shakespeare
Love’s Labor’s Lost by William Shakespeare
1598-1599- Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare
1599- As You Like It by William Shakespeare
Henry IV Part 2 by William Shakespeare
Henry V by William Shakespeare
Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare
Early 17th Century- Hamlet by William Shakespeare
1600- Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare
1601- The Phoenix and the Turtle by William Shakespeare
1602- Troilus and Cressida by William Shakespeare
Othello by William Shakespeare
1603- King Lear by William Shakespeare
Macbeth by William Shakespeare
1603-1604- Measure for Measure by William Shakespeare
1605-1606- Timon of Athens by William Shakespeare
1605-1608- Coriolanus by William Shakespeare
1607- Antony and Cleopatra by William Shakespeare
1607-1608- Pericles by William Shakespeare
1609- A Lover’s Complaint by William Shakespeare
1610-1611- The Tempest by William Shakespeare
1611- Cymbeline by William Shakespeare
1623- All’s Well that Ends Well by William Shakespeare
Henry VIII by William Shakespeare
King John by William Shakespeare
The Winter’s Tale by William Shakespeare
1667- Paradise Lost by John Milton
1671- Paradise Regained by John Milton
Samson Agonistes by John Milton
1704- The Battle of the Books by Jonathan Swift
A Tale of a Tub by Jonathan Swift
1726- Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift
1729- A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift
1764- The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole
1811- Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
1813- Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
1814- Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
1815- Emma by Jane Austen
1817- Sanditon by Jane Austen
1818- Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
Persuasion by Jane Austen
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
1836- Sketches by Boz by Charles Dickens
1836-1837- The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens
1837- Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
1839- Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens
1840-1841- Barnaby Rudge by Charles Dickens
The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens
1843- A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
1844- The Chimes by Charles Dickens
1845- The Cricket on the Hearth by Charles Dickens
1847- Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
1848- The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte
1849- Shirley by Charlotte Bronte
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
1853- Bleak House by Charles Dickens
1854- Hard Times by Charles Dickens
1855- Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens
1859- A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
1861- Silas Marner by George Eliot
1864- Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
1870- The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens
1871-1872- Middlemarch by George Eliot
1874- Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
1876- Daniel Deronda by George Eliot
1878- The Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy
1885- King Solomon’s Mines by H. Rider Haggard
1886- The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy
1887- A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle
1890- The Sign of Four by Arthur Conan Doyle
1891- The White Company by Arthur Conan Doyle
Tess of the d’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
1892- The Adventure of the Speckled Band by Arthur Conan Doyle
1895- Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy
1898- Youth by Joseph Conrad
1899- Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
1900- Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad
1902- The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle
1905- The Scarlet Pimpernel by Emmuska Orczy
1906- Sir Nigel by Arthur Conan Doyle
1907- The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad
1920- Women in Love by D.H. Lawrence
1923- Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie
1924- The Man in the Brown Suit by Agatha Christie
Poirot Investigates by Agatha Christie
1926- The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
1927- The Big Four by Agatha Christie
1928- The Mystery of the Blue Train by Agatha Christie
Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D.H. Lawrence
1930- The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie
1932- Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
1934- Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
1936- The A.B.C. Murders by Agatha Christie
1937- Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
1938- Hercule Poirot’s Christmas by Agatha Christie
Out of the Silent Planet by Agatha Christie
1939- And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
1940- The Patriotic Murders by Agatha Christie
1941- N or M? by Agatha Christie
1942- The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis
1943- The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis
Perelandra by C.S. Lewis
1945- That Hideous Strength by C.S. Lewis
Animal Farm by George Orwell
1949- Crooked House by Agatha Christie
1984 by George Orwell
1950- The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
1951- Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis
1952- The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis
1953- The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis
1954- The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis
The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff
1954-1955- The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
1955- The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis
1956- The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis
The Silver Branch by Rosemary Sutcliff
1959- The Lantern Bearers by Rosemary Sutcliff
1961- The Pale Horse by Agatha Christie
1970- Passenger to Frankfurt by Agatha Christie
1975- Curtain by Agatha Christie
1977- The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien
