Considering that even before Covid some 1 in 6 Americans were on some form of prescribed psychoactive like SSRIs and that north of 20% of women in their 40s and 50s are on antidepressants, I'd say we're well on the way to Huxley's vision. I imagine those numbers are much higher post-Covid. All we need is better drugs to get on the path to Soma and the narco-tyranny is nearly ready.
"Brave New World" was mandatory reading and test topic in my english class in the early eighties. I wonder if that had much impact on my classmates. I had decided I was like the "savage" protagonist but couldn't make up my mind about the whole thing being dystopian. This goes deep. On the surface, abolishing human suffering would be a great achievement.
Considering that even before Covid some 1 in 6 Americans were on some form of prescribed psychoactive like SSRIs and that north of 20% of women in their 40s and 50s are on antidepressants, I'd say we're well on the way to Huxley's vision. I imagine those numbers are much higher post-Covid. All we need is better drugs to get on the path to Soma and the narco-tyranny is nearly ready.
"Brave New World" was mandatory reading and test topic in my english class in the early eighties. I wonder if that had much impact on my classmates. I had decided I was like the "savage" protagonist but couldn't make up my mind about the whole thing being dystopian. This goes deep. On the surface, abolishing human suffering would be a great achievement.
As I started this, I thought to myself "I have never read 'Brave New World', I wonder why?"... and now I know. Thanks for this!
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