Island

Rating:
Summary: Last is not always least
Review: Being Huxley's last novel I was skeptical when I picked it up. Certainly I had no reason to be. Huxley was in top form writing Island. If you are looking for a blueprint for a harmonious life look no further. Huxley lays out a true Utopia and once again proves it could never be. Fortunately for us, he brings to light concepts for child raising and general peaceful living. One can certainly learn from this modern masterpiece. The plot is just as enjoyable as the underlying message. A secluded island, a shipwrecked spy, a changed man, and the inevitable corruption of Utopia. Huxley has spared nothing with this one. Island is a definate must read.

Rating:
Summary: Incredible, much deeper than BNW.
Review: Do not bother reading "Island" unless you are going to take a serious look at yourself and your society. You may not feel the connection between yourself and Mr. Farnaby, but if you live in the western world it's there. Directly or indirectly we have all commited his crimes.
Readers would do well to constantly question fictional truth versus literary metaphor. People on the Island bluntly explain so many concepts to Farnaby that many readers and reveiwers seem to miss key themes. I mean come on, Huxley couldn't just give you everything straight, he had to leave somthing for your post reading reflection.

To all the haters, I say open you mind. Is taking a real look at your self really that offensive?

If so, you just proved one of Huxley's points about ignorance.

Rating:
Summary: MUST READ
Review: Easily one of the best books I've read. Pala is the island which I've dreamt of since I was a child. It is everything I've ever wanted our society to become, but sadly I don't think that day will ever come. I could definitly see narrow-minded people not enjoying this book, as heavy criticisms are placed on Western society and Christianity. Some of the dialogues in the book seem entirely unnatural, but thats really not even an issue. Huxley merely uses the longwinded dialogues to contrast Western civilization with the island of Pala.

I won't even bother compare it to Brave New World simply because the two are so different. BNW describes what Huxley feared the world would become, while Island shows us what he wished it was.

Rating:
Summary: Raises Some Good Questions
Review: First of all, like any utopian vision, this book lacks life. Though I think that psychedelics (entheogens) can help some people to get in touch with a larger reality, I dont think that this holds true for everyone. For instance, personal transformation and inner-conflicts were treated simplistically. I did think the dynamic between the peaceloving people of Pala and its internal greedy members as well as outsiders who wished to exploit the island rang true. Would like to give this book a better review, but I can't.

Thomas Seay

Rating:
Summary: Fresh fresh fresh...
Review: For me, the most appealing feature of this work was the way Huxley combines great society-changes with personal development and joy. Too often people want to make the world better by being a pure and holy human being, which is off course impossible. In Huxleys Utopia society is completely adjusted to the best of human nature, but it's still human nature. This is what makes the whole so realistic and valuable. The obvious question now is off course: Why don't we put his ideas into action? In answering this I must agree with another reviewer, who poses that people in Pala are too earnest, too occupied with their happiness. Maybe Huxley forgot the part of human nature we call 'laziness'. Another possibility is that we're simply too stupid a race to put such obvious guidelines to happiness beside us. When i walk down a library or book shop i'm always having difficulties finding books that describe something positive. It seems we are animals that enjoy suffering as well as complaining about it. Untill we can put this drive for self-pity and misery aside, we're not ready for Pala. I can't help but wondering if we will ever be... .

Rating:
Summary: Outstanding Satire
Review: Huxley gives us a lot to ponder in his "utopian" schemata. His satirical and humorous protagonist, Farnaby, was hilarious. His snide comments and thoughts made me laugh out loud at times. I felt Huxley's writing style was much clearer and more accessible than A Brave New World and as a result I liked Island much better. Island reflects a great deal of cynicism about America and the world. Huxley attacks, among other things (1) consumerism; (2) the cold war ideology of both the capitalistic west and the socialist east; (3) religious suppression of the right of others to develop and practice their own sexual and other "private" mores and the use of the state to further this suppression; (4) violence and militarism clothed in religion, progress (technological and moral), and so called freedom; (5) political and social corruption of corporatism and the power of corporations and those that control them to use their resources for political power.

The key point I feel Huxley makes is that capitalistic or corporate power in the west is able to use it vast resources to obtain what it desires. Corporate power uses money, religion, and the greed of the State to pursue its ends. Had the leaders of Pala given into greed then the Island would not have suffered its eventual fate at the hands of an outside force--but would have suffered an erosion of its "utopian" nature and everyone except the greedy would have lost in the end anyway. But either way it is clear that the corporate interests will take what it desires and use the tools of religious fervor and state power to further their own ends. Its key resource, however, is still MONEY---and in pursuit of what?----more MONEY. The happiness of everyday citizens is sacrificed at the altar of corporate greed.

Island was published in 1962 and really reflects Huxley's views, I suspect, of the latter half of the 1950's. Interestingly, the 1950's are marked by (1) the true rise of consumerism and corporate exploitation of American demand for goods; (2) entrenchment of the Cold War and suppression of individual rights and free thought based on ideological extremism (McCarthy, Hoover, John Foster Dulles, Castro, and Stalin are all towering figures of the 1950s); (3) the emerging battle and public expression of a new set of sexual mores which met a backlash by conservative/religious segments of society; (4) The emergence of cold war capitalism fueled both by American defense corporations and the attempt of the Soviet Union to catch up with the west in terms of industrialization and military might (Eisenhower, during his Presidency, warned of the might of the military industrial complex). Some argue the entire cold war was generated by the greed of American defense industries (this is far-fetched in my opinion).

The scary thing about all this--the same set of circumstances can be said to have exit today, despite the end of the cold war. Certainly, the power of corporations to dominate the political agenda and decision making process is still intact. Whether this limits or threatens individual liberties and democracy is another question. Certainly it did in the 1950's in America. It is amazing to me the correlation between the 1950's and the 1980's at the height of the cold war in American History. (For more information on the 1950's in this country I would recommend a perusal of David Halberstam's The 1950's). Huxley's book is as timely and poignant today as it was in 1962. The right or ability of an individual and a society to choose how it is going to live and progress is as impeded today as it was in the early 1960's---and by the same forces.

Some rogue comments:

1. I found the discussion of "maithuna" or the "yoga of love" to be quite humorous. I especially liked Farnaby's snide thought "What shall be do to be saved? The answer is in four letters". Is there really such a thing as "maithuna"?

2. The use of mind altering drugs for experiencing a different slice of reality was provocative. Huxley wrote a book called "The Doors of Perception" which I have not read. I found these elements of the book to be interesting and really wanted more explication on the subject.

3. The commentary on population control was also quite timely then and now. This exchange I found quite clear and commonsensical:

Farnaby: "You seem to have solved your economic problems [on the Island] pretty successfully".

Dr. Robert: "Solving them wasn't difficult. To begin with, we never allowed ourselves to produce more children than we could feed, clothe, house, and educate into something like full humanity".

4. One of the scary pitfalls of the book is the Island's use of psychological drugs to control and shape the personality of its children so they don't grow up to be problems. Huxley, I felt, placed too much trust in science and medicine in this instance. This seemed to me like something not out of a peaceful utopian society but "A Clockwork Orange" (see p. 154-155 of the Perennial Library paperback edition for the reference-about 2/3rds into chapter 9).

5. I know little about Buddhism and Yoga so those parts of the books I did not get as much out of, although I found them of interest. I wonder why he chose forms of these religions as those most applicable to his utopia as opposed to atheism or some form of spiritualistic religion other than Buddhism?

One last comment: The ending was perfect in its cynicism. (...)

Rating:
Summary: Outstanding Satire
Review: Huxley gives us a lot to ponder in his "utopian" schemata. His satirical and humorous protagonist, Farnaby, was hilarious. His snide comments and thoughts made me laugh out loud at times. I felt Huxley's writing style was much clearer and more accessible than A Brave New World and as a result I liked Island much better. Island reflects a great deal of cynicism about America and the world. Huxley attacks, among other things (1) consumerism; (2) the cold war ideology of both the capitalistic west and the socialist east; (3) religious suppression of the right of others to develop and practice their own sexual and other "private" mores and the use of the state to further this suppression; (4) violence and militarism clothed in religion, progress (technological and moral), and so called freedom; (5) political and social corruption of corporatism and the power of corporations and those that control them to use their resources for political power.

The key point I feel Huxley makes is that capitalistic or corporate power in the west is able to use it vast resources to obtain what it desires. Corporate power uses money, religion, and the greed of the State to pursue its ends. Had the leaders of Pala given into greed then the Island would not have suffered its eventual fate at the hands of an outside force--but would have suffered an erosion of its "utopian" nature and everyone except the greedy would have lost in the end anyway. But either way it is clear that the corporate interests will take what it desires and use the tools of religious fervor and state power to further their own ends. Its key resource, however, is still MONEY---and in pursuit of what?----more MONEY. The happiness of everyday citizens is sacrificed at the altar of corporate greed.

Island was published in 1962 and really reflects Huxley's views, I suspect, of the latter half of the 1950's. Interestingly, the 1950's are marked by (1) the true rise of consumerism and corporate exploitation of American demand for goods; (2) entrenchment of the Cold War and suppression of individual rights and free thought based on ideological extremism (McCarthy, Hoover, John Foster Dulles, Castro, and Stalin are all towering figures of the 1950s); (3) the emerging battle and public expression of a new set of sexual mores which met a backlash by conservative/religious segments of society; (4) The emergence of cold war capitalism fueled both by American defense corporations and the attempt of the Soviet Union to catch up with the west in terms of industrialization and military might (Eisenhower, during his Presidency, warned of the might of the military industrial complex). Some argue the entire cold war was generated by the greed of American defense industries (this is far-fetched in my opinion).

The scary thing about all this--the same set of circumstances can be said to have exit today, despite the end of the cold war. Certainly, the power of corporations to dominate the political agenda and decision making process is still intact. Whether this limits or threatens individual liberties and democracy is another question. Certainly it did in the 1950's in America. It is amazing to me the correlation between the 1950's and the 1980's at the height of the cold war in American History. (For more information on the 1950's in this country I would recommend a perusal of David Halberstam's The 1950's). Huxley's book is as timely and poignant today as it was in 1962. The right or ability of an individual and a society to choose how it is going to live and progress is as impeded today as it was in the early 1960's---and by the same forces.

Some rogue comments:

1. I found the discussion of "maithuna" or the "yoga of love" to be quite humorous. I especially liked Farnaby's snide thought "What shall be do to be saved? The answer is in four letters". Is there really such a thing as "maithuna"?

2. The use of mind altering drugs for experiencing a different slice of reality was provocative. Huxley wrote a book called "The Doors of Perception" which I have not read. I found these elements of the book to be interesting and really wanted more explication on the subject.

3. The commentary on population control was also quite timely then and now. This exchange I found quite clear and commonsensical:

Farnaby: "You seem to have solved your economic problems [on the Island] pretty successfully".

Dr. Robert: "Solving them wasn't difficult. To begin with, we never allowed ourselves to produce more children than we could feed, clothe, house, and educate into something like full humanity".

4. One of the scary pitfalls of the book is the Island's use of psychological drugs to control and shape the personality of its children so they don't grow up to be problems. Huxley, I felt, placed too much trust in science and medicine in this instance. This seemed to me like something not out of a peaceful utopian society but "A Clockwork Orange" (see p. 154-155 of the Perennial Library paperback edition for the reference-about 2/3rds into chapter 9).

5. I know little about Buddhism and Yoga so those parts of the books I did not get as much out of, although I found them of interest. I wonder why he chose forms of these religions as those most applicable to his utopia as opposed to atheism or some form of spiritualistic religion other than Buddhism?

One last comment: The ending was perfect in its cynicism. (...)

Rating:
Summary: Four Hundred Milligrams of Revelation
Review: Huxley's novel is set on the "forbidden" island of Pala, somewhere in the Indian Ocean. Some one hundred years before the novel begins, a doctor was called to Pala in an effort to cure the local King of cancer. He ended up staying permanently, and therewith influencing Pala's social evolution.

As fate would have it, the good doctor was blessed with an open mind, and so the distinctly Western influences he brought to Pala were benign - in fact helpful. Between his New Age science and the King's Tantrik Buddhism, the island maintained a stunning balance between the Eastern and the Western. Everything clicked. Utopia.

On the island, education is biological, spiritual, and deeply psychological. Teachers start with ecology, and gradually "bridge" to every other area of thought - even metaphysics. Although children are given all the time in the world to use their imagination, Pala's teachers "never give children a chance of imagining that anything exists in isolation. Make it plain from the very first that all living is relationship. Show them the relationships in the woods, in the fields, in the ponds and streams, in the village, in the village and the country around it. Rub it in."

Religion on Pala was pantheistic and pagan in nature. Lots of references to Buddhism, Taoism, chanting, and inner spirituality. In fact, the book itself is a sort of spiritual tour de force, wherein Huxley promulgates another beautiful version of his Mind with a capital M theory.

Industrialization of the island never really occurred as such. Instead, Palanesians embrace selective industrialization (no motor scooters, no Sears and Roebuck) and import certain technologies to meet daily needs - like massive refrigeration units to keep crops from rotting between seasons, and a small degree of electricity to support scientific research and whatnot.

Pala's sociological structure is strange strange Huxleyan strange. A mixture of social parenting, fertility control, and religious ceremonies involving "moksha-medicine" - "the reality revealer, the truth-and-beauty pill" - "four hundred milligrams of revelation" - the best way to keep the islanders from biting into the "Tree of Consumer Goods." (Why chase the Western god of innovation when you can chase the dragon?)

As one of the natives, Dr. Robert, points out, "We don't give ourselves coronaries by guzzling six times as much saturated fat as we need. We don't hypnotize ourselves into believing that two television sets will make us twice as happy as one television set. And finally we don't spend a quarter of the gross national product preparing for World War III or even World War's baby brother, Local War MMMCCCXXXIII." Instead the conduct more research on maksha, hone educational techniques, and make lots and lots war oldest enemy, love.

Like any good utopia, a number of critical issues must be addressed head-on. The reality issue is one. On this note, Huxley scores a perfect ten. The book is very realistic; so much so, in point of fact, that he drags the reader to the bottomless depths of "Pure and Applied Pointlessness" and the "Essential Horror" (the omnipresence of death, the precarious of all existence) before building and bridging into Pala's social philosophy of "Pure and Applied Mahayana" Buddhism and "Pure and Applied Science" - a religious and practical science of optimism and wellbeing.

It is only after diving and climbing out of these incredible depths solitude and despair that one learns to see again. "Liberate your selves from everything you know and look with complete innocence at this infinitely improbable thing before you. Look at it as though you'd never seen anything of the kind before, as though it had no name and belonged to no recognizable class. Look at it alertly but passively, receptively, without labeling or judging or comparing. And when you look it, inhale its mystery, breathe in the spirit of sense, the smell of the wisdom of the Other Shore."

Nor does Huxley reconfigure human nature with a literary sleight of hand, making everyone good little boys and girls. Every society has the possibility of creating a Hitler, a Tito or a Stalin, and so does Pala. But it doesn't. The Palanesians employ therapy "on all fronts at once" with an eye toward prevention over treatment. With detection, prevention, and four hundred milligrams of revelation, all problems are curable. Not the mention the love - which this island has in spades.

All told, Huxley has given us a wonder utopia and, perhaps more importantly, a thoroughgoing critique of Western Civilization. A must read for anybody who wants to discover their inner "suchness" and reach the Other Shore, where all is illuminated. "Sunsets and death; death and therefore kisses; kisses and consequently birth and then death for yet another generation of sunset watchers."

Rating:
Summary: Full with both mystical and political insights. Delightful!
Review: Huxley's unique blend of utopia and appocolypse. This novel is a simultaneous blend of excitement, hope and dread. It is successful as a story because of it's compelling story line, but also important as a fresh approach to ancient wisdom. Huxley is a master of dazzling imagery, and startling conclusions. This book will make you think!

Rating:
Summary: Very Dense
Review: I am not an Aldous Huxley expert, but I cannot imagine his fiction in any other case being as dense as it is in _Island_. All of the dialogue is a manifesto. This dialogue lays out the perfect society. The people have no other purpose in life but to find themselves, and to help others find themselves. It is laced with Eastern mysticism and Buddhist thought. There is no true God, other than the ones that they readily admit that mankind has created. Huxley lays out all of these ideas and many more in a very convincing fashion. It was quite interesting to see all of these views stated and stated very well, even though many of the ideas I happen to not concur with. There is very little plot, only every fifty pages or so you get a bit more of the action, but like I said earlier, the crux of this novel is the political ideals that the island holds true and evidently that Mr. Huxley held true. The other main theme is the eventual corruption of anything and anyone that comes in to close of contact with the Western world. It only leads to destruction, and the death of an ideal.