Bernard, Bernard…what happened to you? We liked you so much when this whole thing started. You were rebellious, smart, human, and wanted more from Lenina than sex.
In fact, Bernard's character is interesting because of the remarkable and complete change he pulls, from a likeable hero to a detestable ninny. Look at his character in the first few chapters of the novel. On his first date with Lenina, which we hear about in Chapter 6 , Bernard refuses soma on the grounds that he'd "rather be [him]self. Not somebody else, however jolly.
He's also the one to make the grand connection that easy sex is infantile behavior. It's lines like these that put us, the reader, fully on Bernard's side. He's basically championing our thoughts and opinions within this fictional world. But Bernard's glory moment comes when he's called out for being unorthodox by the Director of Hatcheries and Conditioning: "Bernard left the room with a swagger, exulting, as he banged the door behind him, in the thought that he stood alone, embattled against the order of things, elated by the intoxicating consciousness of his individual significance and importance.
But following this very same paragraph of admirable integrity is the beginning of Bernard's transition. Rather than take personal pride in his individual victory, Bernard has to brag about it to Helmholtz. His extravagant embellishments induce some eye-rolls on the part of the reader "I simply told him to go to the Bottomless Past and marched out of the room" , and we get the sense that Bernard's victory wasn't so much about personal integrity as it was public bragging rights.
Many people look down on Bernard because of his physical handicap of being just 8 centimeters shorter than the normal alpha. For this, he gets picked on by the others. Which in turn increased his sense of being alien and alone. Therefore, they hope for the best for Bernard. Everyone likes an underdog. Readers want to see Bernard succeed. He is not afraid to state his opinions on matters or to stand up for what he believes is wrong. Bernard has become a coward.
Huxley is trying to show how a person can be changed by achieving something they desire. People hope they would be able to maintain their values when they attain their desires. Works Cited Huxley, Aldous. Brave New World. Get Access. Satisfactory Essays. Read More. Rhetorical Analysis Mr King Analysis. Better Essays. Aldous Huxley's Brave New World. Smart people Nerds or Not? Powerful Essays. The Independent Mind Words 3 Pages. The Independent Mind. Bernard is unusually short for an alpha, so his pairing with the very sexually desirable Lenina enhances his status with other alpha men.
Although he wants to be an individual, to feel strongly and act freely, Bernard shows little creativity or courage.
In this, Bernard proves himself a hypocrite. When compared with John and Helmholtz, Bernard remains shallow and uninteresting, despite his loneliness and obvious pain.
John was infatuated with Lenina, and at one point he confessed his love for her. Lenina felt the same way about John as seen when she is very happy with him , and she even made sexual overtures to John after he confessed his feelings.
Bernard asks John if he would like to go to London with him. John thinks that he will not be taken to London, so he sits and cries. Why does John break the window? John gets a phone call. What has Lenina been doing that is surprising and disappointing to Fanny? He was once an ambitious, young scientist performing illicit research.
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