CHAPTER—XVI

Bernard, Helmholtz, and John are ushered into Mustapha Mond’s study. Mond engages the Savage, revealing he has read Shakespeare and explaining why old, beautiful works are banned: they threaten attachment to the past. He contrasts tragedies like Othello with feelies, arguing stability requires sacrificing “high art.”

Mond claims tragedy needs social instability, which the World State has eliminated through conditioning and soma. He defends Bokanovsky Groups and rejects making everyone Alpha, citing the Cyprus experiment where an Alpha-only society collapsed into civil war. He argues lower-caste work suits those conditioned for it and that excessive leisure breeds unrest, recalling a failed four-hour-day trial in Ireland.

Extending the argument, Mond says science is also constrained; post–Nine Years’ War controls prevented knowledge from undermining stability. He admits he once pursued real science and nearly got sent to an island, but chose power and maintaining others’ happiness over truth, a choice he sometimes regrets.

When Mond mentions islands for the unorthodox, Bernard panics, begs for mercy, and is removed for soma vaporization. Mond reframes exile as a reward among independent minds. Helmholtz, embracing hardship to write better, requests a harsh climate; Mond offers the Falkland Islands, which Helmholtz accepts before going to check on Bernard.