Brave New World Archetypes

In Brave New World, several kinds of archetypes are shown, such as; the seeker, orphan, hero and God/creator archetype. * The Seeker Archetype: Is someone looking for answers, it may seem as a journey with a vague and aimless direction to where it is heading, but has as its core the search for a God/ enlightenment. The seeker is usually in search for wisdom and truth, it appears as a lonely soul, someone disconnected from goals and others. In Brave New World we notice that John is the seeker, he is on the search for help, for a god or enlightenment, Bernard Marx then meets John, John and his mother Linda get to leave the reservation to live in civilization, this is exactly what John has been looking for, a place where he would not be alone. * The Orphan Archetype: The archetype of the orphan is described as “feeling from birth as if they are not a part of their family, including the family awareness or tribal spirit”. Yet precisely because orphans are not allowed into the family circle, they have to develop independence early in life. The absence of family influences, attitudes, and traditions inspires or compels the Orphan Child to construct an inner reality based on personal judgment and experience.

He was born in the reservation and lived there much of his life, he tried to fit in with the other kids from the reservation but couldn’t since he was different (white). Because of him being an outcast he had to develop independence very early in his life. His only comfort was his mom, Shakespeare and hope. * The Hero Archetype: The Hero faces physical and internal obstacles, confronting the survival fears that would compromise his journey of empowerment and conquering the forces arrayed against him. The Hero then returns to the tribe with something of great value to all. This is the hero archetype. John tries to fit into the society, but his moral obligation to not to “defile“ causes him much anguish, which leads to trouble and soon to suicide. John displays the most heroism throughout his life. He has moral values he tries to earn despite the temptations of the new world around him. He fails to be a hero because he lacks the ability to change anything, including the standards of the two women closest to him.

* The God/Creator Archetype: Whether a great worldly power or a great physical specimen, the God archetype represents the ultimate in male dominance. On the positive side, a God can be benevolent and compassionate, willing to use his powers to help others out of love for humanity. The shadow God easily becomes a dictator , oppressing others with those same powers, or using his physical attractiveness to get what he wants without ever returning the affection he holds. Mustapha mond, one of the ten world controllers is showing the boys the history of the world state, focusing on the states successful efforts to remove strong emotions, desires and human relationships from society, basically showing how he controlls this whole society